The misunderstood, maligned bear
Dining on sedges in a mature grizzly stops to ponder an intruding photographer. It is not advisable to approach these bears under any circumstances. This picture was taken from a distance with a telephoto lens.
>Photo credit: Larry Aumiller
The animal Canadians know as the grizzly is also found in Europe, the USSR and parts of Asia, including Japan. In the U.S., as in Eurasia, brown bear is the most common name given to this species, which at one time had the largest range of any bear in the world.
The majestic grizzly bear merits its reputation as king of North American wildlife. Free-roaming, independent, playful, largely vegetarian-only its tracks, diggings and droppings are usually seen because it is so elusive. Despite this, the grizzly evokes fear in many because of its tremendous power and aggressive nature. Even its scientific name, Ursus horribilis, has a negative connotation. It does not deserve its bad reputation, much of which is based on misunderstanding.
In general this bear will try to avoid people, but approaching a grizzly which is protecting its young or guarding a kill may provoke a bluff charge or an attack. Fortunately, serious incidents with grizzlies are rare.
Prior to the white main's arrival in North America, the grizzly bear ranged over a large area of the continent from the Arctic coast to northern Mexico and from the Pacific coast eastward to Manitoba and Dakota. Indians generally treated the grizzly with fear and respect and it became an integral part of their culture. This coexistence between man and bear was disrupted by the white man who came armed with rifles and traps.
The grizzly was first sought for its hide to supply European fur markets and it was slaughtered for its skin along with the buffalo. In 1872, in the Cypress Hills of Alberta, more than 750 grizzly hides were purchased by the trading post.
If this excessive killing did not eliminate entire populations from huge areas, particularly from the Great Plains of North America, the slaughter by ranchers and farmers did. It was only natural for the grizzly to regard cattle and sheep as prey when these animals were introduced to bear habitats.
In the continental U.S. grizzly numbers plummeted from about 100,000 animals to between 800 and 900 and its range shrank to one percent of what it used to be. Today, the few remaining populations are the subjects of expensive programs attempting to preserve them, as in Yellowstone Park where their long-term survival is doubtful. In Canada, they vanished completely from Manitoba and Saskatchewan, much of Alberta and large areas of southern B.C.
Although some populations are safeguarded in Canadian parks and other protected areas, much more needs to be done to ensure the survival of the grizzly.
A natural history of Ursus horribilis
Grizzly bears are omnivorous, meaning they eat both meat and vegetation. Normally their diet is 80 to 90 percent plants such as sedges, grasses, berries, nuts, corns and roots. They also eat fish, small mammals, carrion and occasionally moose, caribou and other large wildlife. They migrate to inhabit different areas during different seasons to take advantage of food sources that are most abundant and energy rich. Berries, nuts and roots are especially important in the fall when the bears fatten in preparation for hibernation.
Once the grizzly has found a suitable den, usually on a mountain slope, it will remain there for up to seven months, usually from October to May, depending on the duration and severity of the winter. Dens are usually dug in the alpine area, or the bears may also use natural caves. During this period of dormancy the heat rate decreases from about 40 to 50 beats per minute down to eight to 10 beats per minute. Unlike true hibernators, a grizzly's body temperature decreases only a few degrees from 37 celcius to between 32 and 35 celcius. They don't defecate or urinate while sleeping.
They metabolize primarily fats and reabsorb water from urine in the bladder. Also, during this time the female will give birth to usually two cubs, which will remain with her for the first two years. Litter size can range from one to four depending largely on food availability in the surrounding habitat. A female produces her first litter at between five and eight years of age and subsequent liters every two to three years. These figures vary depending on the geographic location of the bears. Once the male has mated with the female he has nothing more to do with the offspring and may even attack and kill cubs.
Bears tend to be solitary animals occupying large home ranges of varying sizes depending on food supply. For example, a bear living in the rich, lush west coast requires a smaller home range than one in the drier interior where food is more scarce.
Former and present ranges of the grizzly bear whose numbers have shrunk to less than
one tenth of what they once were.
Click on image for detail.
