A group of polar bears that have taken over an abandoned polar research station off Russia's far eastern coast have been intimately captured in drone footage by Russian traveler and photographer Vadim Makhorov.

Makhorov was on a sea cruise in the Chukchi Sea with a group of tourists and was filming the landscapes of Kolyuchin Island when he noticed polar bears near an abandoned building.

He discovered that the animals were using it as a shelter to live and rest.

According to Makhorov, the bears were not afraid of his drone.

Instead, they appeared curious and even tried to interact with it playfully.

“Bears are no strangers to the feeling of comfort and coziness, they perceive homes as shelter,” he said in a social media post.

Kolyuchin is a small island in the Chukchi Sea, located about 11 kilometres (6.8 miles) off the northern coast of the Chukotka Peninsula.

The polar research station was established on the western part of the island in 1943 and was closed in 1992.