Brown Bear

Brown bears are omnivores, meaning they eat both plants and meat. Their diet changes with the seasons. In the summer, they like to eat berries and fish, particularly when fish are spawning. Trout and salmon provide important nutrients that help the bears gain weight before winter. Brown bears can also use their strong claws to dig for tubers, which are underground plant parts. Occasionally, they may hunt young animals like moose or caribou, and they might go after sick or injured adult animals as well.

At the Zoo, brown bears enjoy a variety of foods including a specialized ground carnivore diet, fish, apples, carrots, pears, tomatoes, and corn on the cob. They also receive various foods for enrichment, including frozen items, pumpkins, and melons.

The brown bear is the most widely distributed species among all bears. They are found in the forests and mountains of North America, Europe, and Asia. Brown bears have different sub-species that live in various areas, like Russia, the United States, Canada, Romania, the Balkans, Sweden, and Finland. In North America, brown bears are found in western Canada, Alaska, and the states of Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, and Washington.

Brown bears used to live in many places across western North America, including parts of Mexico, as well as in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa. Fossils found in places like Ontario and Labrador in Canada, and Ohio and Kentucky in the United States show that they roamed much farther east in North America than they do today. While they used to be found widely across Europe and Asia, overhunting over many years has led to their disappearance from many countries in these regions.

Brown bears can be found in various habitats, ranging from desert edges to high mountain forests and icy fields. In North America, they usually like tundra, meadows, and coastal regions. In Siberia, you can often find them in forests, while in Europe, they mostly stay in mountain woodlands.

Brown bears are at the top of the food chain and are considered apex predators.

Unfortunately, human activity has put a few isolated subpopulations of brown bears in danger. These conflicts typically occur in areas where humans leave food items that attract brown bears, such as dumpsters, unsecured livestock, or crops. When bears come into these areas, it can create problems for people, and sometimes results in the bears being killed to protect humans or their property.

Brown bears are known for their large frame with a rounded back and a noticeable hump of muscle above their shoulder blades. Depending on the subspecies and individual, their fur can vary from uniform brown to mixed shades of brown, blonde, silver-tipped (grizzled), or nearly black. Cubs may have lighter spots on their chest, but as they grow, they usually lose these markings.

In the fall, brown bears grow a thick layer of fur to keep warm during the winter, and they shed this extra fur in the spring. They have long, strong claws that help them rip apart logs and dig for food. Their snouts are long, and their sense of smell is really sharp. Brown bears can track the scent of food or prey from over two miles away!

During mating season, which lasts from April to July, brown bears come together, with males staying with females for up to three weeks. Typically, female brown bears mate every two to three years. During the interval years, their cubs learn from their mothers until they can survive on their own.

Brown bears experience something called delayed implantation. This means that after eggs are fertilized, they do not attach to the female's body until October or November. This timing helps the mother bear eat plenty of food before winter, which is important for the survival of her and her cubs. In late fall or early winter, mothers go into a den and stay there until early spring with their cubs. Cubs are born in the den between January and March, and usually, a mother has one or two cubs. When they are born, the tiny cubs weigh only half a pound to one pound, and they are blind and hairless.

Mother bears nurse their cubs for over a year, but by about five months old, the cubs start eating different foods. Cubs stay with their mothers for at least two springs, but often they stay until they are three or four years old.

Brown bears vocalize eleven different sounds, including deep low grunts, clicking, huffing, roaring, and growling. They can also communicate through body language and scent marking. By scratching and rubbing against trees and other landmarks, they share information about their territorial boundaries and reproductive status.

Brown bears are typically solitary animals, but may come together in the same area if food is abundant or it is mating season. Brown bears use their social structure to determine who gets the best access to food when they are in groups.

During the winter, all subspecies of brown bears sleep for four to six months and spend the spring and summer eating to sustain themselves during this time. Although it is not considered true hibernation (as the bear's body temperature does not significantly decrease), the bear's heart rate slows to only ten beats per minute, their metabolism slows, and they do not urinate or defecate while sleeping. This state is called "torpor". The timing of their hibernation depends on the region where they live and may begin as early as October or as late as December. They will emerge from their winter sleep anywhere from March to May. This is a natural behavior that allows bears to conserve energy and survive during seasons when food is scarce.