Ursus arctos horribilis, grizzly bear
Snyder, S. A. 1991. Ursus arctos horribilis, grizzly bear. In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: https://research.fs.usda.gov/feis/species-reviews/urarh
| Abbreviation | Common Name | Scientific Name | Classification | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Animals | ||||
| URARH | grizzly bear | Ursus arctos horribilis | Life Form: Animals/Mammal Kingdom: Animalia Class: Mammal Order: Carnivora Family: Ursidae Genus: Ursus | Fed. Protected: Yes Nativity: Native Invasiveness: Noninvasive |
Taxonomy
The currently accepted scientific name for grizzly bear is Ursus arctos horribilis. It is 1 of 6 subspecies of brown bear (Ursus arctos). Other North American subspecies of brown bear include [6]:
- Ursus arctos alascensis, Alaskan brown bear
- Ursus arctos gyas, peninsular brown bear
- Ursus arctos middendorffi, Kodiak brown bear
- Ursus arctos sitkensis, Sitka brown bear or ABC Island bear
- Ursus arctos stikeenensis, Sitkine brown bear
Synonyms
- None
Other Common Names
grizzly, brown bear
General Distribution
The grizzly bear ranges from Alaska east through the Yukon and Northwest Territories, south through British Columbia and through the western half of Alberta. Isolated populations exist in northwestern Washington, northern Idaho, western Montana, and northwestern Wyoming. Ursus a. horribilis includes all brown bear of continental North America; U. a. ssp. middendorffi includes brown bear on the Alaskan islands of Kodiak, Afognak, and Shuyak. U. a. ssp. nelsoni's range is in northern Mexico [6].
States and Provinces
- United States: AK ID MT WA WY
- Canada: AB BC MB YK
- Mexico
Plant Communities
Although timber is an important habitat component, grizzly bear prefer more open habitats. Timbered plant communities most frequented by grizzly bear include subalpine fir (Abies lasiocarpa)-whitebark pine (Pinus albicaulis), lodgepole pine (P. contorta)-Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), and spruce (Picea spp.)-western redcedar (Thuja plicata)-hemlock (Tsuga spp.) forests. Sedge (Carex spp.)-bluegrass (Poa spp.) meadows are also important, as well as shrubfields and low- and high-elevation riparian communities [3,23,36,39].
Biological Characteristics
Development and Reproduction
- Mating Season - breed every 2 to 3 years; May through July
- Birthing Season - late November through February; one to four cubs, two is common
- Gestation - 6 to 7 months with delayed implantation
- Age of Maturity - 5 to 8 years for females
- Life Span - 25 years or more in captivity
- Denning - between October and May; length of time depends on food availability, weather conditions, and sex of animal; may emerge if disturbed by human activity [6,17,31]
Predators
Grizzly bear predators include humans and other grizzly bear [17].
Habitat
Diet
Grizzly bear primarily eat grasses, forbs, roots, tubers, and fruits. They also eat carrion, grubs, insects, particularly army cutworm moths (Noctuidae) and ladybird beetles (Coccinelidae), fish, small rodents, various bird species, and garbage [39]. Adult males also prey on subordinate grizzly bear and on black bear [14]. Orchards, beehives, and crops may be damaged by grizzly bear; they may also prey on livestock [17,32]. Some of the more common plant foods are russet buffaloberry (Shepherdia canadensis), Saskatoon serviceberry (Amelanchier alnifolia), Sitka mountain-ash (Sorbus sitchensis), snowberry (Symphoricarpos spp.), hawthorn (Crataegus spp.), honeysuckle (Lonicera spp.), whitebark pine seeds, pine (Pinaceae) vascular cambium, willow (Salix spp.), dogwood (Cornus spp.), huckleberry and blueberry (Vaccinium spp.), dandelion (Taraxacum spp.), sweetvetch (Hedysarum spp.), clover (Trifolium spp.), cowparsnip (Heracleum spp.), glacier lily (Erythronium grandiflorum), horsetail (Equisetum spp.), lomatium (Lomatium spp.), kinnikinnick (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi), strawberry (Fragaria spp.), buckthorn (Rhamnus spp.), paintbrush (Castelleja spp.), thistle (Cirsium spp.), fritillary (Fritillaria spp.), boykinia (Boykinia richardsonii), and sheathed cottonsedge (Eriophorum vaginatum) [6,8,13,14,26,29,32,37,39].
Preferred Habitat
Grizzly bear prefer open, shrub communities, alpine and low elevation meadows, riparian areas, seeps, alpine slabrock areas, and avalanche chutes [32,36,38]. They typically choose low elevation riparian sites, wet meadows, and alluvial plains during spring [28,36]. During summer and fall grizzly bear more frequently use high elevation meadows, ridges, and open, grassy timbered sites [28,32]. Various authors have mapped and evaluated grizzly bear habitat [5,30,35].
Cover Requirements
Optimal grizzly bear cover is wooded areas interspersed with grass- and shrubland. Ruediger and Mealy [29] defined hiding cover as that which is capable of hiding an animal at 200 feet (61 m) or less in an area of 30 to 50 acres (12-20 ha). Thermal cover was defined as coniferous trees at least 40 feet (12 m) tall with a 70 percent canopy cover in a 7- to 50-acre (3-20 ha) area. These authors recommended maintaining 30 percent of grizzly bear habitat as cover. McLellan [22] stated that not enough significance is given to timbered areas as components of grizzly bear habitat. Graham [13] found that in Yellowstone National Park, grizzly bear preferred open areas that were within 160 feet (50 m) of cover. McLellan and Shakleton [23] reported that the bears use areas within 300 feet (100 m) of roads during the day, but that darkness is sufficient "cover" for road use at night. Grizzly bear use daybeds in timbered areas that are near feeding sites [3,28]. Winter dens are usually excavated in hillsides, although dens are also made in rock caves, downfall timber, and beneath trees and stumps [6,31,36].
Fire-caused Mortality
Direct fire-related mortality probably occurs but may not have a significant impact on the grizzly bear population as a whole [44].
Fire Effects on Habitat
Many authors have blamed fire suppression in some areas for the decline of grizzly bear [7,25,35,36]. Fires can promote and maintain many important berry-producing shrubs and forbs, as well as provide a medium for insects and in some cases carrion. Referring to the Yellowstone National Park fires of 1988, Blanchard and Knight [44] stated: "The most important apparent immediate effect of fires on grizzly bears was the increased availability of some food items, especially carcasses of elk." Studies in western Montana showed that spring burning in Douglas-fir-ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) types promoted huckleberry sprouting [24]. The number of stems present after burning were closely related to the number present before burning. Grouse whortleberry (Vaccinium scoparium) declined following fire in western Montana because its shallow rhizomes were killed by the heat [37,38]. In the same study most shrubs occurred on sites burned 35 to 70 years previously. Martin [21] found that huckleberry was most productive on sites burned between 25 to 60 years previously or on sites clearcut and burned 8 to 15 years previously. Huckleberry on sites left untreated for more than 60 years was least productive. Other shrubs that respond well to overstory removal and broadcast burning are elderberry (Sambucus spp.), Sitka mountain ash, serviceberry, and buffaloberry [15].
Fire Regimes
For fire regime information, search FEIS for this species by entering the species name or acronym on the home page and selecting “Fire Regime” as the publication type.
Fire Management Considerations
Fire can be used to create and maintain seral shrub communities for grizzly bear by rejuvenating shrubs, releasing nutrients, and discouraging conifer dominance [25,37]. In the case of postharvest treatment, many authors recommend broadcast burning and discourage dozer pile burning. The latter method can damage rhizomes, root crowns, and the soil [4,16,29,37,39]. Natural fire programs as well as prescribed burning for improved grizzly habitat are encouraged and practiced by some National Forests [7,11,16,25,35]. Garcia [11] and Holland [16] discuss burning practices on the Kootenai and Flathead National Forests. A fire-induced increase of berry-producing shrubs may only be beneficial if spread over large areas that encompass home ranges of several bears [33]. However, prefire plant composition may dictate postfire composition [24]. Berry-producing shrubs must be provided continually over time to be beneficial [15]. Miller [24] recommends burning huckleberry during spring in Montana Douglas-fir-western larch (Larix occidentalis) communities. Also, burning should be conducted when duff is damp; fires that remove most of the duff often reduce huckleberry density.
Federal Status
The grizzly bear is listed as Threatened in most of the conterminous United States. Grizzly bears in Idaho and Montana are listed as an Experimental Population, Non-Essential. Populations in the North Cascades Ecosystem are Under Review for listing. Cabinet-Yaak populations are Under Review for listing as Endangered [42].
Other Status
Information on state- and province-level protection status of animals in the United States and Canada is available at NatureServe, although recent changes in status may not be included.
Other Management Information
Grizzly bear have a low reproductive rate and late maturation age which makes them susceptible to overharvesting. Also, many grizzly bear are poached or hit by cars and trains. Other factors contributing to the bear's decline are habitat use and disturbance by humans, both for commercial and recreational purposes; and fire control, which in some instances can result in reduced acres of food-rich seral shrubfields [17,19,33,38]. Grizzly bear have been known to prey on livestock where their ranges overlap and occasionally kill humans as a result of chance encounters, usually in the backcountry. Because of conflicts between grizzly bear and humans, grizzly bear habitat should be isolated from developed areas, preferably in areas that receive only light recreational, logging, or livestock use [45].
Logging can benefit grizzly bear populations if silvicultural treatments promote berry-producing shrubs. However, timber management effects should be considered over the entire rotation because an increase in shrubs may only redistribute grizzly bear and not increase their numbers [27]. Logging can also increase human access to critical grizzly bear habitat, disturbing populations. Roads should be located away from feeding areas, such as shrubfields, wet meadows, and riparian zones. Road and seasonal trail closures must also be enforced [27,29]. Scarification and dozer pile burning can disturb soil and kill valuable food shrubs [38]. Several authors list timber management recommendations and road construction guidelines in grizzly bear habitat [25,28,37,39,41].
Table A1— Forest and range ecosystems, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) physiographic regions, Kuchler plant associations, Society for American Foresters (SAF) forest cover types, and Society for Rangeland Management (SRM) rangeland cover types in which this species occurs.
Forest and Range Ecosystems (Garrison et al. 1977)
- FRES11 Spruce-fir
- FRES20 Douglas-fir
- FRES21 Ponderosa pine
- FRES22 Western white pine
- FRES23 Fir-spruce
- FRES24 Hemlock-Sitka spruce
- FRES25 Larch
- FRES26 Lodgepole pine
- FRES29 Sagebrush
- FRES36 Mountain grasslands
- FRES37 Mountain meadows
- FRES38 Plains grasslands
- FRES44 Alpine
BLM Physiographic Regions (Bernard and Brown 1977)
- 8 Northern Rocky Mountains
- 9 Middle Rocky Mountains
Kuchler Plant Associations (Kuchler 1964)
- K001 Spruce - cedar - hemlock forest
- K002 Cedar - hemlock - Douglas-fir forest
- K003 Silver fir - Douglas-fir forest
- K004 Fir - hemlock forest
- K005 Mixed conifer forest
- K008 Lodgepole pine - subalpine forest
- K011 Western ponderosa forest
- K012 Douglas-fir forest
- K013 Cedar - hemlock - pine forest
- K014 Grand fir - Douglas-fir forest
- K015 Western spruce - fir forest
- K018 Pine - Douglas-fir forest
- K020 Spruce - fir - Douglas-fir forest
- K050 Fescue - wheatgrass
- K052 Alpine meadows and barren
- K063 Foothills prairie
SAF Cover Types (Eyre 1980)
- 16 Aspen
- 18 Paper birch
- 109 Hawthorn
- 201 White spruce
- 202 White spruce - paper birch
- 203 Balsam poplar
- 204 Black spruce
- 205 Mountain hemlock
- 206 Engelmann spruce - subalpine fir
- 208 Whitebark pine
- 210 Interior Douglas-fir
- 212 Western larch
- 213 Grand fir
- 215 Western white pine
- 217 Aspen
- 218 Lodgepole pine
- 219 Limber pine
- 221 Red alder
- 222 Black cottonwood - willow
- 223 Sitka spruce
- 224 Western hemlock
- 225 Western hemlock - Sitka spruce
- 226 Coastal true fir - hemlock
- 227 Western redcedar - western hemlock
- 228 Western redcedar
- 229 Pacific Douglas-fir
- 230 Douglas-fir - western hemlock
- 235 Cottonwood - willow
- 237 Interior ponderosa pine
- 251 White spruce - aspen
- 252 Paper birch
- 253 Black spruce - white spruce
- 254 Black spruce - paper birch
SRM Rangeland Cover Types (Shiflet 1994)
- No entry
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