Where does the brown bear spend the winter? What does a brown bear eat?

Brown bears are large mammalian predators that impress with their power and strength. Despite the fact that animals live on different continents, they are usually associated with Russia. After all, a brown bear with a balalaika has become the national symbol of our country. In this material we will tell you everything about these magnificent predators: where they live, what they eat, how they differ from each other.

Types of brown bears

In total, there are about twenty species of these animals in the wild, living in different parts of the globe. But the most numerous populations belong to the following species:

• Apennine;
• Siberian;
• Gobi;
• Tien Shan;
• Grizzly;
• Kodiak.

Where does the brown bear live?

Over the last century, the range of these predators has changed significantly. If previously it was possible to meet a brown bear throughout almost the entire territory of the northern continents, as well as in Africa, now this species lives only in a few places. The reasons for this decline are hunting for predators and deforestation. Main habitats:

• Canada.
• Forest zone of Russia.
• Alaska.
• Alps, Pyrenees, Apennines.
• Hokkaido Island (Japan).
• Palestine.
• Central Europe.
• Iran, Iraq.
• China.
• Carpathians.
• Northwestern states of America.
• Scandinavia and Finland.

Appearance and features

The brown bear is a large predator covered with thick brown fur, the darkness of which depends on the subspecies. The animal has a large head, small eyes, long, sharp fangs, rounded ears, and a small depression on the bridge of the nose. It moves on four paws, each of them has five fingers with large sickle-shaped claws reaching 10 cm in length. Such characteristics have included these forest inhabitants in the list of the most dangerous animals on the planet. And this is really justified, because a meeting with a wild predator can end very tragically. The environment and subspecies of the animal affect its size.

• The largest individuals live in Alaska and Kamchatka. The length of their body reaches 2.5 meters with a height at the withers of 1.3 m, and if the animal stands on its hind legs, then its height can reach three meters. Females are much smaller than males.
• The average weight of Kamchatka predators is 300–450 kg. But this figure increases significantly as winter approaches, and before hibernation, adult males can reach a mass of 700 kg.
• The inhabitants of Alaska are much larger, and their usual weight ranges from 700 kg to one ton. The largest animal caught weighed 1130 kg.
• The smallest representatives of this species are European bears. In most cases, their body weight does not exceed 400 kg, and their length reaches 1.2–1.5 m.

Behavior

Brown bears “settle” in dense forests near water bodies. At the same time, the predator leaves its “wilds” in extreme cases, only when it is tormented by hunger. If the bear's territory runs out of food, it can wander. For example, the alpine mountain subspecies lives in valleys in the spring, then moves to meadows, and by the end of summer it moves into the forest.

By nature, these predators are solitary animals. Males live separately from females with cubs. Moreover, each individual has its own territory, which can reach from 70 to 400 square meters. The space occupied by the female is up to seven times less than that of the male. Animals delimit their “allotments” with the help of scratches and a specific smell that remains on the bark of trees.

Seasonal features

The activity of this mammal depends on seasonal cycles. In the summer they fatten up, build dens in the fall, and hibernate in the winter. For their wintering, the animals choose a place overland in the very depths of the forest. These can be holes under windbreaks, rock crevices, small caves. In some cases, bears dig their own dens. Just before hibernation, the animal “creates comfort” in its home, namely, it lays the surface of the den with leaves and dry branches. Females and males sleep separately from each other. If a mother bear has cubs, they go to bed with their mother.

Hibernation is a period of shallow sleep for animals. It begins in the fall and continues until the arrival of spring. Moreover, the duration of this phenomenon depends on the climate of the area and other natural factors, and can reach from 70 to 200 days.

Animals wake up at the moment when their subcutaneous reserves are completely depleted. This usually happens in early spring. If the animal did not have time to gain enough fat over the summer-autumn, then it may come out of hibernation in the winter. Such an animal is called a “connecting rod”. An awakened bear poses a huge danger, because at this moment it can attack anyone due to hunger.

Nutrition

Bears are omnivores, and most of their menu consists of various roots, berries, nuts, and insects. If possible, it can also feast on small animals, amphibians and reptiles. Bears love honey, so they often break hives of wild bees or destroy farm apiaries. They are excellent fishermen, and fish plays a significant role in their diet.

Brown bears very rarely hunt large mammals. But if the animal does not have enough food, then this can happen. Hunting is carried out for roe deer, deer, fallow deer and other artiodactyls. In rare cases, they can “pick up” wolves or bears of other species.

For all their external clumsiness, these animals are excellent hunters and can reach speeds of up to 50 km per hour. Bears can sneak up and kill large moose with one blow.

Reproduction

The mating season for predators begins in May. At this moment, animals are especially aggressive and it is better to avoid meeting them. Pregnancy of female bears lasts seven months, after which 2-3 cubs are born. The weight of newborn cubs does not exceed half a kilogram, and the babies are born absolutely helpless. They hibernate with their mother. The she-bear feeds the cubs with milk, but at the same time teaches them the basics of hunting. Cubs that reach three or four years old begin an independent life. At the age of six years, bears become sexually mature. The average lifespan of these animals is 20 years. In captivity, this period can double.

Video

One of the most famous and dangerous predators on Earth is the brown bear. He is the main character of legends and fairy tales of many peoples. The brown bear lives in large forest areas and hides deep in the forest for the winter. In the Far East, bears are small, in Central Asia they are almost three times larger. The main preference in choosing a habitat is food; if there is a lot of food in a given territory, the bear will not go further than 500 hectares; if there is a shortage of food, the animal can become a real nomad.

Externally, the brown bear is a powerful animal with a large head, on which are located rather small eyes and ears. The gigantic force of bear blows is provided by the hump located in the withers area; it is a cluster of well-developed muscles. The bear has a tail about 20 cm long, but it is practically invisible among its thick fur. The coat color varies depending on the subspecies from light brown to black, the most common color being brown. The bear has four paws, each with five toes. Each finger ends in a sickle-shaped claw up to 10 cm long. Males grow up to 2.5 m in length and weigh 500-750 kg. The animal looks very clumsy, but in fact the bear is very dexterous and agile, can make high jumps, run fast, swim and climb trees. When it rears up its height reaches 3 m.

Most often, bears can be found in taiga-type forests. The habitat where this predator lives is almost the entire forest belt of Siberia, Russia and the Far East. These animals are also found in mixed, coniferous and deciduous forests of Central Asia and the Caucasus.

The brown bear is an omnivore. At the beginning of summer, bears feed on roots, young shoots and plant bulbs. Later, acorns, mushrooms, nuts and berries become his food. In autumn, animals go out to fields with corn or oats. Bears in the Caucasus love to visit fruit groves, eating cherry plums, apples and pears. In Central Asia, they raid plantations of pistachios, apricots and cherry plums. In forests, bears destroy anthills, tear off the bark of rotten stumps in search of bark beetles and other beetles, they can eat chicks or eggs from a bird's nest, and catch small rodents and frogs. They are also very good at fishing; on occasion they can attack a wild boar, elk, cow or horse, and they do not disdain carrion.

In the fall, the bear gets fat, preparing for the period of hibernation; nutrients accumulate in its body. During this period, the animal makes a den in a rock crevice, in a recess under an inverted stump or windbreak; a dry place must be chosen for the den. Males hibernate separately from females. If there was not enough food in the summer, the bear wanders in search of food even in the winter. This bear is called a “connecting rod”; it is dangerous for herbivores and can sometimes even attack humans.

In January or February, mother bears give birth to cubs. Usually these are 2-3 bear cubs weighing 0.5 kg each. The babies are blind, naked, the bear keeps them warm against her belly, warming them with her breath. She feeds them milk; due to the substances accumulated during the winter, bear milk becomes thick. When spring comes, the mother takes the cubs out of the den and the grown cubs eat, under her supervision, berries, worms, insects and everything else they can find in the forest. Males stay aloof and do not take part in raising the young. Grown-up babies cause a lot of trouble for the female; they become very active, fight each other, climb trees, and swim.

The brown bear has very few enemies in nature, since it is a very strong opponent. Sometimes they are attacked by wolves; in the Far East, tigers are their enemies.

Out of fear of the bear, people have been hunting it for centuries; history even tells of cases where rewards were announced for a killed bear. The animal has tasty meat, its fat is rich in vitamins, and the skin, although cheaply valued, is very warm. But the bear itself does not attack a person, and does not even come close to the places where people live (with the exception of the above-mentioned connecting rods).

Brown bears are very strong and beautiful, and are rightfully considered a symbol of our country. The appearance of this large animal is impressive both in its power and grandeur. Currently, this animal is the largest land predator in the world.

Its lifespan in nature is estimated at 30 years. In captivity, the predator can live up to 50 years. Linguists believe that the name of this beast is made up of two words - “knowing” and “honey”. And this is understandable: despite being a predator, the bear is a big fan of sweet honey and, in general, an omnivore.

Description of appearance features

What is the weight of a brown bear? The weight and height of the animal depends on its habitat. On average, the mass of an individual can vary from three hundred to six hundred kilograms, and its length from one and a half to two meters.

However, bears that live in central Russia are slightly smaller than their counterparts and weigh about one hundred twenty kilograms. Grizzlies and Far Eastern bears are considered the largest.

The record holder in this area was a bear found on Kodiak Island: its mass reached one thousand and one hundred thirty-four kilograms. Closer to hibernation, in the fall, the animal gains about twenty percent fat of its total mass. Usually males are much larger than females approximately twice.

Body type of brown bears very powerful, with a rather massive head. The animal is quite high at the withers, the ears are very small, as is the tail, the length of which is about two centimeters. And on the large paws there are very long and strong claws, ten centimeters long, which help the animal hunt and cut up prey.

The bear's body is covered with thick, evenly colored, slightly stiff and, undoubtedly, very beautiful fur, and what color it will have depends on reddish, dark brown or dark gray, depends on the region where the predator lives. Bear offspring have light spots on the chest or neck, however, they gradually disappear with age.

When bears move, like people, they tend to shift the weight of their entire body weight onto one paw, which is why these predators are classified as plantigrade animals. And also bears periodically change their fur coat, and the first time this happens is immediately after the first hibernation. It should be noted that the very first molt is more intense than all subsequent ones. In the fall, before hibernation, this process proceeds more sluggishly and slowly.

Where does the brown bear live?

Bears inhabit a fairly wide area. If we talk about the European part, these animals can be found in areas such as the Alps, Apennines, Pyrenees, and the Scandinavian Peninsula.

One of the places most populated by brown bears is this is Finland. Rarely, they are found in the central forests of the European part and in the Carpathians.

In the Asian part, the range of bears is separate territories of Palestine, Iraq, Iran, Japan, Korea and even China. In Russia, bears can be found in almost all forests, in addition to those located closer to the south.

The North American continent is almost completely populated by these predators. More individuals live in Canada, Alaska and the islands adjacent to it.

Lifestyle

How and where does a bear live? Bears are uncohesive animals; they are solitary and only come together during the breeding season. They do not have a shelter to which they will return again and again, in other words, a permanent place of residence.

They drive wandering lifestyle, because their main goal is to search for food. However, if the territory is quite rich in various living creatures and other food for bears, then they still prefer not to linger on it, but also do not go too far, so that if something happens, they can return to where they definitely have everything they need for a comfortable existence .

Bears prefer dense and deep thickets and forests, next to which there are any bodies of water. Looking at this huge and powerful predator, it is difficult to imagine what dexterity it has, however, it is so. Bears are skilled hunters. At a young age, they easily climb trees of various heights, and their talent for swimming develops from childhood and remains until the end of their lives.

Most often, bears prefer to rest during the day, but in the late afternoon, at night, they wake up and start hunting. Most brown bears hibernate during the cold season, but some of them lead a very active lifestyle in winter.

How long do bears live? Everything again directly depends on the region in which they live. The lifespan in nature, that is, the natural habitat, varies from twenty to thirty-five years. But in the case when the animal is kept in captivity, this number becomes much more significant, because, if you trust the statistics, many bears in various zoos, where they are provided with the necessary care, reach the age of five decades!

What and how does a predator eat

Despite the fact that the brown bear is a predator, most of its daily diet consists of food of plant origin. These animals do not disdain insects, including various larvae. And as everyone knows, he loves to eat honey.

Animals that are too large are not often the prey of predators, but small animals he eats with great pleasure. A strong bear paw is capable of breaking the backbone of a young elk or deer, as well as roe deer, fallow deer and mountain goats in one blow. Sometimes even wild boars are the prey of these predators.

It should be noted that bears are wonderful fishermen, which is why the presence of a reservoir in the territory inhabited by them is so important. In total, the bear's daily diet is as follows:

• wild berries, such as blueberries or raspberries;
• oats and corn;
• fish, such as trout;
• mice;
• hens, chicks and eggs;
• tubers, nuts, acorns.

Times can sometimes be quite difficult when searching for food is a difficult task. However, the bear is saved by one of its main advantages - omnivorousness and unpretentiousness. Thanks to them, and not just their strength and power, they are able to survive even in the harshest conditions.

Interestingly, clubfooted animals are very thrifty animals. They skillfully hide uneaten food, disguising it under many branches.

Types of brown bears

The brown bear family includes more than one subspecies. Let's look at the most common of them.

Reproduction of brown bears

After the predators feel completely rested and full of strength, the mating period begins, which usually begins in late spring, in May, and lasts about a month.

It's interesting that at this time females tend to mark territory. Males find their chosen ones by special smells and try to protect them from rivals.

Sometimes a serious dispute breaks out about who will get the bear. In this case, the battle is literally life and death. Winners sometimes even eat their dead rivals.

The brown bear is a large predatory animal. It has a large head with small ears, powerful paws armed with sharp claws, and a short tail. The coat is quite thick, the color can have many shades from light brown to almost black.

The body length of an adult bear varies from one to three meters, and weight from 300 to 1000 kilograms. The size and weight of a bear depends on which subspecies it belongs to. The smallest bears live in Europe, and the largest live in Kamchatka, Alaska and Kodiak Island.

Spreading

Once upon a time, the brown bear lived throughout Europe, but now its numbers have greatly decreased; the animals are preserved in the Carpathians, the Alps, in the forest areas of Central Europe and some other areas. The brown bear is found in the forests of Russia and in some Asian countries (China, Japan, Iraq, Iran, Palestine, etc.). In North America, the brown bear is called a “grizzly”, where it lives in America and Canada.

Basically, bears are forest dwellers. European brown bears prefer to live in mountain forests, brown bears living in Russia are more often found in dense lowland forests, and bears living in North America like the open spaces of the tundra.

Nutrition

Despite the fact that brown bears are predators, their diet is very diverse. Most of the menu is of plant origin, and only a quarter of the diet is meat. Bears readily eat nuts, berries, juicy herbs, acorns, large tubers and plant roots. They can visit fields where they feast on corn, oats and other agricultural crops.

Bears also do not refuse small prey, catching frogs, lizards, mice and insects. Many bears fish. Sometimes they can hunt deer, roe deer, fallow deer and other ungulates.

All bears have a sweet tooth. They really love the honey of wild bees. And these powerful animals got their name precisely because of their love for honey.

Lifestyle

Bears have a seasonal rhythm of life. In the warm season they lead an active life, and in the cold autumn they lie down in a den. Bears make dens in hollows under dry broken trees, and sometimes spend the winter in caves. Hibernation lasts approximately five to six months.

Brown bears are solitary animals. They jealously guard their territory, making special marks on trees with their claws. A bear that violates the designated border is immediately driven out of it. Despite their external clumsiness, brown bears run quickly and climb trees well.

Every two to four years, a mother bear gives birth to two to five cubs. The cubs are born small, blind and deaf, weighing about half a kilogram and a little more than 20 cm long. They appear in a den in winter, and by spring they grow noticeably. The mother bear raises the cubs herself. She is a very good mother, always takes care of her kids and selflessly protects them.

Under natural conditions, brown bears live from 20 to 30 years, and in captivity - up to 50 years.

Brown bear brief information.

The brown bear is the most widespread and best known member of the bear family. Its scientific name, Ursus arctos, is a combination of the Latin and Greek words meaning "bear."

The brown bear's range once extended as far south as North Africa and central Mexico. In the Middle Ages, the beast inhabited almost all of Europe, including the Mediterranean and the British Isles. Today, due to overfishing, habitat destruction and road construction, the population has declined significantly.

Today, brown bears are common in Russia, northwestern North America, Scandinavia, and Japan. They are also found in isolated areas of Southern and Eastern Europe, China, Mongolia, the Himalayas, as well as in the mountainous areas of some Middle Eastern countries. There is even a small population in the mountains of the Mongolian Gobi Desert. However, the favorite habitats of brown bears are dense forests, remote from populated areas, where windbreaks and shrubs are abundant. In America they inhabit wooded mountains.

Previously, the species was so variable and widespread that it was divided into dozens of subspecies (some of them became extinct); some of them were considered species. However, now they are all combined into a single species, which includes several subspecies. The most famous of them include:

Common (European)

This subspecies is found in Europe, the Caucasus and Russia throughout the forest zone, except for the south of the European part of the country. It has medium sizes.

This large subspecies of brown bear is widespread in Alaska and western Canada.

Kodiak

One of the largest predators in the world. Inhabits from Kodiak and Shuyak islands to Alaska.

Syrian

One of the smallest species of brown bears. It is found in the mountains of the Middle East, as well as in Turkey, Syria and Iran.

Tien Shan

This relatively small subspecies is one of the smallest. Found in the Tien Shan, Himalaya and Pamir mountains.

Description of a brown bear

The size of the brown bear is very individual and depends primarily on its geographical habitat. The body length of the animal is from 1.5 to 2.8 meters, the height at the withers is 0.9-1.5 m, the weight of males is 135-545 kg. Sometimes there are males whose body length reaches 3 meters and weight reaches 700 kg. Particularly large individuals live on Kodiak Island (USA), on the coast of Alaska, and in Russia - in Kamchatka. In the European part of Russia, brown bears weighing 250-300 kg are most often encountered.

Females are much smaller: their average weight is 90-250 kg. The weight of these animals also depends on the time of year - in the fall they are the most well-fed, since for successful winter hibernation they need to thoroughly stock up on subcutaneous fat.

The body of the drill bear is very powerful, the withers are high and muscular; the head is massive with a wide forehead, the eyes are small, the ears are round, the tail 5-20 cm long is almost invisible under a layer of fur.

The fur of the animal is thick, the longest hair grows on the withers and on the back of the body, it is shorter on the head and paws. Although our hero is called brown, he is not always painted exactly this color. In nature, you can meet black, light gray, straw yellow and even silver (grizzly bears in North America) individuals. Cubs of the same litter can have different colors.

The bear's build is heavy, awkward, and in order to support its large mass, its paws are plantigrade (when walking, the entire sole is pressed to the ground). This same feature allows him to freely rise and stand on his hind legs. On each paw it has 5 fingers, armed with curved non-retractable claws, the length of which can reach 10 cm.

Nature did not reward clubfoot with acute hearing and vision, but compensated for this with an excellent sense of smell. When the animal stands on its hind legs, it uses its sense of smell to try to obtain more information about its surroundings.

How do brown bears live in nature?

Bears prefer to lead a solitary lifestyle. In search of food, they wander across their vast areas: on the mainland, these areas can be 200-2000 sq. km for males and 100-1000 sq. km for females. Individual territory is vigilantly guarded from the invasion of strangers, and if some clubfoot encroaches on someone else's property, a clash cannot be avoided. Adult males can cause serious injuries to each other during territorial fights.

Diet

The brown bear, unlike its fellow polar bear, cannot be called a predator in the full sense of the word. On the contrary, about 75% of its diet consists of plant foods. These are nuts, berries, tubers and stems of herbaceous plants, seeds, acorns, etc.

Thanks to its muscular withers and huge claws, the brown bear is better suited for digging up small mammals, insects and underground parts of plants. Strong jaw muscles also allow the animal to more easily handle fibrous foods and survive on a plant-based diet.

In general, the bear’s menu depends on the season and the availability of different types of food. Its diet also includes rodents, frogs, worms, and lizards. He willingly eats carrion.

In some areas, brown bears have real feasts when they find large concentrations of insects or come ashore during salmon's spawning run.

In some places they hunt ungulates. With one blow of a powerful paw, the animal can break the spine of a deer. Sometimes they hunt roe deer, wild boar, fallow deer, and mountain goats. Often clubfoot significantly limit the number of these animals by hunting young ones.

When obtaining food, the animal relies mainly on its strength rather than speed. However, despite its clumsy appearance, the clubfoot can run quite briskly if necessary - at speeds of up to 50 km/h. It is an excellent swimmer, and young individuals are good at climbing trees.

Hibernation

Since bears descended from canids and evolved towards herbivory, they faced a problem - a lack of food in the winter. One of nature’s solutions was their ability to hibernate during the winter.

Typically, hibernating animals save a lot of energy due to a significant, sometimes almost zero, decrease in body temperature. The body temperature of bears that have climbed into a den decreases slightly (from 38 to 34° C), but their heart rate and breathing rate noticeably decreases.

Brown bears are among those mammals that, while asleep, can live up to 6 months without eating, drinking or excreting. Sleeping animals draw energy mainly from fat reserves: the more plump a bear is when it hibernates, the less body weight it loses during sleep. This process is so effective that bears rarely die during winter sleep: death from starvation occurs more often in the spring, when the metabolic rate increases.

In the fall, bears begin setting up a den. Most often, for their winter rookery, they choose places on the outskirts of impassable swamps or along the banks of forest rivers and lakes. A prerequisite is distance from populated areas. Rookeries are located under the roots of massive trees, in ravines, caves, crevices, pits, and windbreaks. At the bottom of the den the bear lays a bedding of spruce branches, moss, bark, dry grass, etc.

Bears go into hibernation in October–December and emerge from it in March–May. These terms depend on many factors, but mainly on the geographical habitat. In different areas, sleep can last from 70 to 195 days.

Reproduction

The mating season for brown bears is May-July. The male and female spend time together for several weeks, but as soon as mating occurs, the animals scatter.

Pregnancy in these animals has its own characteristics: the fertilized egg in the female’s body develops to the state of a blastocyst, then stops growing, and around November it is implanted into the uterus. During the hibernation period, pregnancy proceeds quite quickly, the fetus develops actively and after 6-8 weeks 1 to 4 cubs are born. Thus, the total gestational age is 6.5-8.5 months.

High body temperature is necessary for bears to develop their cubs, which are born in the middle of winter. The birth of cubs in the dead of winter and their subsequent feeding by a hibernating mother is an amazing phenomenon.

Bear cubs are born with open eyes and very thin fur. Proportional to the mother's mass, they are very small (less than 1%), which is much less than in other placental mammals. However, feeding cubs with milk in the den takes a lot of energy from the mother, as a result of which the female loses up to 40% of her body weight during hibernation.

The reproduction rate of bears is quite low and depends on the region and the abundance of food. As a rule, a female bear gives birth to her first litter at the age of 5 to 10 years, and the interval between the births of cubs is from 2 to 5 years. Females are able to reproduce until about 20 years of age.

In the wild, brown bears live on average about 25 years. There is a known case where an animal in captivity lived to be 43 years old.

Conservation in nature

Due to their wide distribution and habitat in remote areas, it is very difficult to determine the exact number of brown bears today. According to rough estimates, there are 200-250 thousand of these animals in the world. This seems like a fairly large number, but we must not forget that many populations are extremely small and are in danger of extinction. Tiny remnant populations are scattered throughout Spain, Italy, France, and Greece. Brown bears were brought to some areas of France, Austria, and Poland from other places. Restoring small populations is difficult due to the low reproduction rate of bears.

The conflict with humans, the only enemy of polar bears, is aggravated by the fact that each bear uses a very large territory. In Russia, Japan and some European countries, hunting of brown bears is allowed. In our country, for example, 4-5 thousand animals are killed annually. This level of legal shooting is considered acceptable, but there is still the problem of poaching.

Most populations are listed on CITES Appendix II, with the Chinese and Mongolian populations listed on CITES Appendix I. American populations found in Alaska are listed as rare by the IUCN.

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