Alaska Peninsula brown bear

[Gorilla king]

Accepted scientific name:  Ursus arctos gyas (Clinton Hart Merriam, 1902); however many authorities recognise only two subspecies of brown bear in North America: the grizzly bear (U.a. horribilis) and the Kodiak bear (U.a. middendorffi).  This places the bears of the Alaska Peninsular in the subspecies U.a. horribilis.

In 1918 Clinton Hart Merriam divided the North American brown bears into 86 subspecies based upon small physical differences, mainly relating to skull measurements.  Over time this list has been reduced but some experts believe that there is still sufficient evidence to warrant classifying five North American subspecies in addition to the widely accepted grizzly and Kodiak bear subspecies.  In this website we include those five subspecies; the Peninsular (U.a. gyas) brown bear  being one of them.  However, much of the following information, other than range, is similar or identical to that given on the pages for the Alaskan (U.a.alascensis), Dall Island (U.a. dalli), Sitka (U.a. sitkensis) and Stickeen (U.a. stikeenensis) brown bears.

Description:  A large bear, most commonly dark brown in colour but can range from blonde through to black.  The often grizzled appearance is caused by the light coloured tips of the long guard hairs over the shoulders and back.  The bears have a distinctive hump on the shoulders and a slightly dished profile to the face.  The front claws are noticeably long.  There is considerable variation in size depending upon the food available.  Adult males typically weigh 135 to 390 kg, females 95 to 205 kg.  Adults are usually between 90 and 110 cm at the shoulder.  These bears are usually larger than those of the interior (due to the larger amounts of protein in their diet).

Range:  Alaska Peninsula and Unimak Island in the Aleutian Islands; includes the famous populations at McNeil River and Katmai.




Habitat:  The southern side of the Alaska Peninsula is rugged and mountainous, the northern side is generally flat and marshy. The large lakes and connecting rivers of the peninsula are important to the bears as the spawning sites of salmon.



Status:  Brown bears are listed as “of least concern” by the IUCN and listed in CITES Appendix II.  There are around 30,000 brown bears in total in Alaska (excluding the subspecies U.a.middendorffi).  Stable and large population, hunting seems to be within sustainable limits.

Life span:  Around 20 to 30 years in the wild.

Food:  The bears are omnivorous and eat plants, grasses, sedges, roots, tubers, seeds, berries, tidal vegetation,sockeye and chum salmon, small mammals and carrion.  They will also predate upon moose, particularly newborn animals.Sockeye salmon, chum salmon, tidal vegetation.

Behaviour:. The bears reach sexual maturity between the ages of four and seven years.  Mating occurs between May and July.  The bears go into winter dens usually in October or November and emerge in April, or May.  Cubs are born in the den in January and February, litters usually being of two or three cubs but can be of one or four.  They will remain with the mother about two and a half years during which time she will not become pregnant again.  Except for mating and for mothers with cubs, grizzly bears are solitary although they will congregate in groups where there are plentiful sources of food, such as spawning salmon, whale carcasses and sedge fields.

Threats:  As with other Alaskan bears there is the risk of habitat loss, habitat fragmentation, and the resultant conflicts with humans.  Poaching including for body parts to be used in medicine seems to be an increasing threat for all bears.  Hunting is generally well regulated and based upon reliable population estimates.  It seems likely that these bears are or will soon be affected by climate change either directly or indirectly as habitat and food sources change or disappear.Hunting, conflicts with humans.


www.bearconservation.org.uk/peninsula-brown-bear/

[Gorilla king]

BOOK CALIFORNIA GRIZZLY: SOME WEIGHTS GIVEN FOR THE ALASKA PENINSULA BROWN BEAR (URSUS ARCTOS HORRIBILIS, FORMERLY URSUS ARCTOS GYAS), SOME MORE THAN 1000 LBS;

[Gorilla king]

LURCH

Adult Male
Year First Identified: 1st classified as young adult in 2005

Last Year Observed: 814 Lurch was last observed in July 2016



Offspring Of: Not known

Darting Attempts: Ranger Michael Saxton was not able to attempt to dart 814 Lurch in 2016 prior to 814 Lurch's remains being discovered. He was successfully darted in 2006 by former wildlife biologist Tamara Olson.


Identification:

814 Lurch was one of the most distinctive bears at Brooks River. He was very large and was missing his right ear. His muzzle was long, and he had a disctinctive scar above his right eye. In June and July, his back had a pronounced saddle and was sometimes noticeably shed out. Late in the summer, his new coat was a uniform dark brown.

Distinctive Behaviors:

Like 856, 814 Lurch was often observed repeatedly licking his lips while he fished and walked around Brooks Falls. In 2005, when initially classified as a young adult, 814 typically fished the riffles, cut bank area, and scavenged salmon carcasses at Brooks Falls. Since 2008, however, this bear became increasingly dominant. 814 would steal fish and regularly displace other bears from his preferred fishing spots. 814 became one of the most dominant bears on the river and only consistently yielded space to 856 and 747 from 2012 to 2015.

Life History:

814 Lurch was described as a young adult male when he was first identified in 2005.



katmai-bearcams.fandom.com/wiki/814_Lurch

[Gorilla king]

LURCH MARKING TERRITORY:

[Gorilla king]

DOMINANT MALE BEAR "VAN"





"VAN THE LEYENDARY BEAR"

[Gorilla king]

BOONE AND CROCKETT-ALASKA PENINSULA BROWN BEAR 2ND WORLD RECORD HEAD SIZE, 26 INCHES NOSE TO BACK OF HEAD, 60 INCHES AROUND NECK:

[Gorilla king]

2019's baddest, most dominant bear cam bear has emerged

"Nearly all other bears avoided his approach."

Bear #856


Bear #856 on right



This summer, Fitz has seen bear 68, the dominant bear that won the live-streamed, early July fight, interact with bear 856. These are both bears at the top of the hierarchy. But, 856 still holds an edge.

The two males, rather than fighting, have engaged in long "staring contests." Sometimes, 68 will move slightly, likely to avoid an unnecessary escalation. But 68 certainly doesn't run from 856, like many other bears.

"From the interactions I've witnessed, 856 is more dominant than 68, but 856 seems to sense that 68 is not a competitor to take lightly," noted Fitz.

SEE ALSO: Heat records in Europe are dropping like flies 

Bear 856 may eventually cede supreme dominance to bear 68, or someone else. It's the way of things. But the proven bruiser will still likely be dominant for years ahead, even as he ages. There will, almost certainly, be fights.

"Life at the top of the hierarchy is tough. Status has to be maintained," said Fitz.

"We're seeing [the bears] in the prime of their life, a time that won't last forever with them," he added.


mashable.com/article/bear-cam-most-dominant?amp=1

[Gorilla king]

BEAR # 480 OTIS




OTIS CHASING SUBADULTS:





DOMINANT BEAR #856 DISPLACING OTIS:

[Gorilla king]

Check out bear # 856, the most dominant bear of the last few years. He is the one that displaced Otis. # 856 is one of the largest of Brooke falls.

[Gorilla king]

HERE IS "CHUNK" BEAR # 32, ONE OF THE DOMINANT BEARS AT BROOKS FALLS:

[Gorilla king]

BEAR BIOLOGIST WILL TROYER:

"COASTAL BROWN BEARS ARE EXTREMELY BULKY WITH POWERFUL MUSCLES THAT COVER ITS MASSIVE DENSE BONES AND GIVE IT GREAT STRENGTH"




books.google.com/books?id=widDNRl9rDoC&pg=PA3&dq=strength+of+kodiak+bear&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjYkb6yyanpAhXHmHIEHWTIC5EQ6AEISjAG#v=onepage&q=strength&f=false

[Gorilla king]

BEAR #747:

[Gorilla king]

How Big are the Fat Bear Week Bears?

Fat Bear Week is over for another year, and Holly has claimed the title of the fattest bear of 2019. She is a true champion of Katmai National Park, an individual who exemplifies skill and success in the bear world. In Katmai, fully grown and well fed adult female bears like Holly can often tip the scales at 600-700 pounds and Holly is probably well within, or even exceeds, that weight class. Based on her overall size though, how might she compare to other bears in Katmai? And just how big can a Katmai bear grow? Now, thanks to unusual use of terrestrial laser scanning technology, we have some answers.


Holly is the reigning queen of fat bears. She was voted the fattest bear of 2019 in Katmai National Park’s annual Fat Bear Week tournament.

The size and weight of wild bears has always been problematic to measure. You can’t just walk up to a bear with a tape measure and tell it to hold still or expect it to stand on a scale. Hunter-killed bears can provide some info, but the “record” bears documented by the Boone and Crockett Club are ranked on skull size, not body mass. Biologists will sometimes weigh and measure wild bears as part of their studies, yet this requires tracking and tranquilizing animals. While the methods and procedures used to tranquilize bears are well tested and reliable, biologists cannot eliminate all risk to themselves or the animals. Therefore, the application of non-invasive technology may provide ways for people to satisfy their curiosity and learn more about wildlife without interacting or harming them.

Similar to echolocation used by bats, terrestrial laser scanning technology sends out a series of laser beams that “echo” off an object. The returning signal is recorded by the scanner. Specialized computer software is then used to render a three-dimensional computer model of the object or place. The process is frequently used by civil engineers, GIS specialists, and surveyors to document, analyze, and monitor roadways, gravel pits, mining sites, and buildings. The scanning technology also determines an object’s volume very precisely without the need for a person to physically measure it, which brings me back to bears.

In their effort to gain as much fat as they can before winter hibernation, dozens of bears have come to rely on Brook Falls as a place where they can wait for salmon to come to them. Experienced and skilled bears know patience is the key to success at the falls. By sitting or standing and waiting for salmon to come to them, they can make a huge profit in calories without expending much energy.

Because terrestrial laser scanners need to record thousands and sometimes millions of data points to achieve a reliably accurate rendering of a subject or landscape, the object of interest needs to remain stationary. Where might wild bears remain still long enough to complete an accurate scan? Brooks Falls.

On September 16, Joel Cusick, a geographic information specialist with the National Park Service’s Alaska Regional Office, set up a Trimble SX10 scanner on the elevated wildlife-viewing platform adjacent to Brooks Falls. He then waited for good opportunities to scan bears fishing there. Good opportunities came when a bear stood still and did not have a significant portion of its body submerged in the water. To get an accurate scan, a bear had to remain stationary for about 16 seconds.

Five bears stood still long enough—32 Chunk, 151 Walker, 480 Otis, 747, and 854 Divot. Two bears, Otis and Walker, were scanned more than once from different locations, which allowed Joel to combine the scan data for a more accurate model of the bear. Other bears were present as well but were too obscured by water or did not remain still long enough to get an accurate scan.

On the computer afterward, Joel processed the scans to exclude nearby objects like rocks. Since the scanner only saw the bear from one side, it only recorded half a bear’s volume. Once the images were cleaned of non-bear objects, the animals’ true volumes were calculated by doubling the original value. (Of course, this presumes that bears are completely symmetrical. They are some irregularities, but I don’t think Otis’ floppy ear or any other asymmetry would make a significant difference.)


Spread over 1.5 hours, Otis occupied nearly the same position at the falls, which allowed his volume to be determined with high precision.

Although volume isn’t the same as mass, it’s somewhat easy to calculate an object’s mass when you know its volume and what it is made of since mass is a product of density and volume. In other words, just multiply an object’s density by its volume and you are left with its mass. With bears, the math is complicated slightly by the fact that bears aren’t made of only one type of tissue. Like our own bodies, they are a combination of water, muscle, bone, organs, and especially at this time of the year, fat. Because the bears at Brooks Falls were not physically handled, only estimates of their body composition were used to calculate their mass.

Brown bears in this area are often around 35% body fat in late summer and fall. For simplicity, the rest of the bear was considered to be the lean tissue, which is about the density of water. With the math complete, we now have a good idea of what the bears weighed on the day of the scans. The 2019 Fat Bear Week tournament was full of truly fat bears.



Wow.

These statistics illustrate that Katmai’s bears are some of the biggest in the world. In the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, where bears have to work much harder to find nutritious food, adult females average 296 pounds and adult males average 457 pounds during September and October. Even 854 Divot, a mature female who is not particularly large compared to Katmai’s adult males, is almost 700 pounds. I’ve long thought 747 was a very big bear, frequently stating that he’s the largest I’ve ever seen and that he might weigh 1,200 pounds. Now, I know that was likely an underestimate! As Katmai National Park posted on their Facebook page, 747’s volume on September 16 was about the size of a side-by-side refrigerator. At over 1,400 pounds, he’s probably larger than 99% of all brown bears, and he might be within a couple hundred pounds of the biggest wild brown bear ever recorded.


The mighty 747 is one of the largest bears living on Earth today.

When I corresponded with Joel Cusick, he was careful to note that while the weights are impressive, it’s the volume measure that is more accurate since the bear’s body composition could only be estimated. The test project also lacked a control. To ensure its accuracy, it would need to be used on bears from a captive facility where researchers can physically measure and weigh the bears to compare the results with those of the laser scans. Even so, the scans from the falls provide us with a reasonable estimate of their weight, perhaps even within 50 pounds.

This is the first ever application of terrestrial laser scanning technology on wildlife. When we apply technology in an unconventional way, we might be able to better satisfy our curiosity. More importantly, we might be able to track the growth of bears at Brooks Falls without the risks associated with drugging and handling them. That information could be coupled with salmon escapement numbers or an individual bears’ fishing success to more fully understand the factors that influence their summertime growth. Like watching wildlife through a webcam, it could allow us to learn more about them without disturbing or altering an animal’s behavior. Perhaps one day, we’ll be able to do more than just guess how much bears like 747 or Holly weigh in June, July, and September. We’ll be able to follow their growth from skinny to fat with precision.

blog.explore.org/how-big-are-the-fat-bear-week-bears/

[Gorilla king]

THE ALASKA PENINSULA BROWN BEAR AVERAGES 389 KG (857 LBS) FOR THE 9+ YEAR OLD MALES:







NOTE: THE ONLY RELIABLE WEIGHTS FOR ADULT MALES IN THIS CHART ARE FROM THE ALASKA PENINSULA BROWN BEAR BECAUSE ITS THE ONLY ONE WITH THE AGES 9+. ALL THE OTHER BEARS ARE 6+. RENOWNED BEAR BIOLOGISTS DOUG PEACOCK AND WILL TROYER CONSIDER A BROWN BEAR FULLY GROWN BY THE AGE 9+.

[tyrannosaurs]

Some skulls:
photos.app.goo.gl/UL4HM92FSupKgFrD9

[Gorilla king]

Aug 14, 2021 8:40:53 GMT -5 tyrannosaurs said:

Some skulls:
photos.app.goo.gl/UL4HM92FSupKgFrD9

This is actually not an Alaska Peninsula brown bear, its the brown bear from the mainland Alaska, and the scientific name "Ursus arctos alascensis" was removed and its now "Ursus arctos horribilis"


See U. A alascensis in interior Alaska:


Ursus arctos, of those proposed by Clinton Hart Merriam, which some still consider as bone fide subspecies. Four of these (in red name boxes) are now widely believed to be of the subspecies U.a. horribilis. The fifth (in the green name box) is the widely accepted subspecies U.a. middendorffi (the Kodiak bear). (Peter Fitzgerald/ subspecies data: Bear Conservation –


www.bearconservation.org.uk/alaskan-brown-bear/

[tyrannosaurs]

Hmmm...

[tyrannosaurs]

Here, I got here one weight!
photos.app.goo.gl/v2be4W9nxdrrS8dq6

[nocap]

[Gorilla king]

nocap

Awesome once again bro. Coastal brown bear wins 8/9 out of 10 times.