grizzly bear (redirected from Grizzly bears and their habitat)

grizzly bear or grizzly, large, powerful North American brown bear, characterized by gray-streaked, or grizzled, fur. Grizzlies are 6 to 8 ft (180–250 cm) long, stand 3 1-2 to 4 ft (105–120 cm) at the humped shoulder, and weigh up to 800 lb (360 kg). Primarily omnivorous, they are excellent hunters and prey on large mammals such as deer; they relish ants and other insects and depend on plants, roots, and berries to supplement their diet. Once widespread in the western half of North America, from the Arctic Circle to central Mexico, habitat destruction and hunters have nearly exterminated the grizzly. Classified as threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, small groups can be found in protected regions of Alaska, W Canada, and the U.S. Rocky Mts. The grizzly is a subspecies, Ursus arctos horribilis, of the brown bear, Ursus horribilis, which has small populations throughout North America and N Eurasia. It is classified in the phylum Chordata, subphylum Vertebrata, class Mammalia, order Carnivora, family Ursidae.

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grizzly bear

Grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis).

(credit: Stephen J. Krasemann/Peter Arnold, Inc.)

Large North American brown bear whose forms, including the Alaskan brown bears, are usually considered races or subspecies of a single species (Ursus arctos). The more than 80 forms once ranged over open regions of western North America from Mexico to Alaska, but their numbers have dwindled. Grizzlies have humped shoulders, an elevated forehead, and brownish to buff fur. They may grow to about 8 ft (2.5 m) long and weigh 900 lbs (410 kg). One variety, the Kodiak bear, is the largest living land carnivore, reaching lengths of more than 10 ft (3 m) and a weight of 1,700 lbs (750 kg). Grizzlies feed on game, fish, berries, and occasionally grass. They have been known to attack humans and are prized as big game.