The grizzly bear derives its name from the silver-tipped or grizzled appearance of its fur, though it is often associated with the term "grisly," meaning "horrible."

Dear Lykkers, the grizzly bear, a subspecies of the brown bear, is noted for its large size and the distinctive hump-on its shoulders.

Fur coloration ranges from dark brown to blonde or black. Grown males generally weigh between 300 and 800 pounds, while females weigh 200 to 450 pounds. Male grizzlies can stand up to eight feet tall on their hind legs.

Habitat

Adaptability: Grizzlies thrive in a variety of environments, including high mountain forests, subalpine meadows, arctic tundra, wetlands, grasslands, mixed-conifer forests, and coastal regions.

Range

Geographic Spread: Today, grizzly bears inhabit Alaska, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Washington, and possibly southern Colorado, as well as western Canada. Historically, their range extended from Alaska to Mexico and from the Pacific Ocean to the Mississippi River. Western expansion greatly reduced their numbers.

Migration

Seasonal Behavior: Grizzly bears hibernate instead of migrating. Males travel long distances to establish territories or reclaim habitats, while females disperse over shorter distances. Grizzlies are capable of covering dozens of miles, with territory sizes dependent on food availability.

Breeding

Reproductive Patterns: Females reach maturity between four and seven years of age and breed in late spring. Implantation of fertilized eggs is delayed until November, ensuring young are born during winter hibernation. Cubs stay with their mothers for up to four years, during which females do not breed. Grizzly bears have one of the slowest reproductive rates among North American mammals.

Life Cycle

Longevity: Grizzly bears have a lifespan of 20 to 25 years.

Feeding

Diet: As omnivores, grizzlies consume a wide variety of foods, including insects, berries, nuts, bulbs, roots, carrion, and fish. In Canada and Alaska, salmon serves as a significant food source. In Yellowstone, grizzlies can eat up to 20,000 army cutworm moths daily during summer. Grizzlies may store carrion by covering it with grass and moss to preserve it.

Threats

Habitat and Predation: Habitat degradation due to development, logging, road construction, oil and gas drilling, and livestock grazing poses significant threats to grizzlies. Predator control also contributes to their decline. In the Yellowstone region, the whitebark pine nut, an essential food source, is diminishing due to pine bark beetle infestations exacerbated by climate change.

Population Trend

Decline: Between 1850 and 1970, grizzly bears were eliminated from 98 percent of their historical range. Population estimates dropped from 50,000 to approximately 1,500–1,700 today. In 1975, grizzlies in the contiguous United States were listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act due to this dramatic decline.