Bears of B.C.

Bears - the Family Ursidae

There are eight species of bears in the world: the Grizzly bear, Black bear, Polar bear, Asiatic Black bear, Giant Panda, Sloth bear, Sun bear, and Spectacled bear. These eight species represent the living members of the Family Ursidae , which includes three subfamilies ( Tremarctinae , Ursinae , and Ailuropodinae ).

Two of the world's bears can be found in British Columbia, the Grizzly bear and the Black bear . Like all bears, the bears of B.C., are solitary animals. A male bear's range is very large and may encompass the smaller ranges of several females to which he tries to maintain exclusive breeding privileges. Black and Grizzly bears are omnivores (they eat plants and animals) - however, plants make up the vast majority (~75%) of their diet. A key word in describing bears is "adaptable"...they have been seen to eat such varied things as fish, rodents, insects, garbage, berries, flowers, nuts, fruit, and even carrion!

Breeding

Breeding occurs in the spring, however, the process is one of "delayed implantation" whereby the egg is fertilized but not embedded into the uterine wall. Instead, the egg is held in stasis (not developing) until just prior to hibernation. The female may then implant the embryo into the wall or abort, possibly based on whether or not she has an adequate storage of fat. The result is that when the cub(s) are born in January or February they have only developed for a short time...they are less than a foot long and weigh less than a pound!

Hibernation

Hibernation is an amazing part of a bears life. For up to six or seven months of the year, a bear sleeps and goes without eating, drinking, urinating, or defecating! The heart rate slows, and the body temperature drops. This ability has very important scientific and medical applications. Several recent medical advances have already resulted from studies on bear hibernation.

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Grizzly Bear ( Ursus arctos )

Species Information

Grizzly bears are the larger of British Columbia's two bear species. The heaviest recorded Grizzly bear weighed more than 1,136 kg, but the average weight for a male is 3-363 kg, with a female weighing roughly half that. The largest Grizzly bears in the world, the Kodiak bears of Alaska, may in fact be the largest bears in the world, a title normally given to polar bears. A Kodiak bear may be up to 7-10 feet long from nose to tail. Grizzlies fur varies in colour from brown to black to almost white/blond. Range can vary considerably with a males range being 20 - 800 square miles and a female's 10 - 650 square miles.

Click 'play button' to hear a Grizzly bear's growl.

Distinguishing Characteristics

• white tips on ends of hair shafts are what gives the "Grizzly" its name
• a large hump of muscle on the shoulders allows the Grizzly to dig powerfully
• a facial profile with a concave appearance over the bridge of the nose
• large claws up to 8 cm long (the length of a wax crayon)

Population Status

In B.C.:             At Risk        Estimated population: 4,000 - 13,000
In Canada:     Healthy        Estimated population: 20,000

Distribution

Although the brown bear is the single most widely distributed species of bear in the world, occurring in many areas of the northern hemisphere, its distribution in North America has been dramatically declining! Today, the Grizzly bear occurs in less than 1% of its original range in the contiguous United States (population~600), and less than half its original range in Canada. The Grizzly bear can only be found in significant numbers in British Columbia, Alaska, Yukon Territory and parts of the Northwest Territories. While the Black bear is adapted to life in the forests, the Grizzly bear is better suited to open forests, plains, and meadows. As an adult it is relatively unable to climb trees to forage and relies more on digging for food.

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Black Bear ( Ursus canadensis )

Species Information

Black bears are more common of British Columbia's two bear species. A male American Black bear can weigh up to 363 kg but on average is about 113 pounds, a female is roughly half that size. A Black bear stands roughly three feet at the shoulder. Its fur can be any colour from the common black variety, to brown, to the Glacier blue bears of northwest B.C., to white Spirit Bears, or Kermodes, of west central B.C.. A male's range averages 42.8 square miles and a female's about 7.6 square miles.

Distinguishing Characteristics

• sloping facial profile likened to that of a German Shepherd
• relatively small claws of up to 4 cm in length

Population Status

In B.C.:           Healthy        Estimated population: 60,000 - 120,00
In Canada:      Healthy        Estimated population: 285,000

Distribution

Large numbers can be found in the forested areas of most of Canada, coast to coast, western United States, and north-central Mexico.  The American Black bear is widely distributed in North America, occurring in 42 of the 50 states and 11 of the 12 provinces in Canada.  Black bears can be found throughout British Columbia.

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Threats to Survival

Loss of Habitat

Increasingly, urban sprawl and industrialization are pushing their way into bear habitat resulting in less space for bears.

Hunting

Today, both Black and Grizzly bears can be legally hunted in B.C.  Roughly 4,000 Black bears and 300 Grizzly bears die in this manner every year.  The majority of bear hunting is done in the spring when female bears are emerging from their dens with cubs.  Bear hunting is referred to as trophy hunting indicating that it is not done for sustenance purposes.  Recently, hunting of the "vulnerable" Grizzly bear was changed to a limited entry system (lottery) rather than a system of open season in which monitoring was extremely difficult.  Many people believe that any hunting of a vulnerable species is too much!  Grizzly bears are the slowest reproducing large carnivores on the continent, with females reaching 5-9 years old before sexual maturity, and then having only 1-4 cubs every 3-5 years.  Much of the bear hunting in B.C. is done by foreigners, through the mandatory use of guide-outfitters in the northern parts of the province.

Illegal Trade in Bear Parts and Poaching

Bear parts (paws, jaws, claws, hides, galls, etc) are used by some cultures in traditional medicines, exotic dishes, and jewelry.  The use of bear parts outside North America has led to a decline in many of the world's bears, such as Asiatic Black bears, Sun bears, and Sloth bears.  Increasingly, this market is affecting North American bears, whose parts can be substituted for those of the Asian counterparts.  It is estimated that one bear may be killed illegally (poached) in B.C. for every bear that is killed legally.  One of the largest factors driving this trade is bear gall bladders.  Bear galls contain bile enzymes called Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) thought to have medicinal and aphrodisiac properties in some Asian cultures.  For many years now, UDCA has been synthetically produced and is legally available to consumers, but the mysticism of bile that comes from an actual, wild bear continues to drive demand.  In parts of Asia, bear bile sells for more per gram than cocaine or gold.  Equally disturbing is the fact that at a recent symposium on bears it was revealed that more than half the demand for bear bile in B.C. comes from people within B.C.!  Although CITES (Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species) prohibits trade in all eight species of bears internationally, regulation and enforcement of this proves difficult, especially when illegally hunted bears can be disguised as legally hunted bears.

Habituation to people ("problem bears")

Bears are well designed to take advantage of changing conditions in their environment.  When garbage becomes available to bears they quickly accept and eventually rely on it as a food source.  Bears that become accustomed to people are termed "habituated" - this is perhaps the most dangerous bear in the world.  Every year, roughly 800 Black bears and 70 Grizzly bears are killed in B.C. as problem bears.  The real "problem" is often mismanagement of food and garbage through improper storage facilities or purposeful feeding of bears.  Communities, government, and individuals need to take responsibility for ensuring that local waste sites are "bear-proof", denying access to bears.  Additionally, bears should never be touched, fed, or approached!  This creates not only a danger to yourself but to anybody else who encounters that habituated bear.