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Post by Gorilla king on Jul 24, 2021 18:36:00 GMT -5
 
Accepted scientific name: Ursus americanus carlottae (Osgood, 1901).
Description: Larger than mainland black bears and regarded as the largest subspecies of the American black bear with a huge skull and molars, and found only as a black colour phase with a tan muzzle and often a white v-shaped chest blaze.
Range: Haida Gwaii archipelago (formerly the Queen Charlotte Islands), Canada.
Habitat: Forests, meadows, streams, estuaries and shorelines of the archipelago.
Status: It is not known how many bears there are on the Islands but since since 1977 over 975 bears have been killed by hunters. In 1995 and 2004 the Council of the Haida Nation called for an end to recreational bear hunting on Haida Gwaii.
Life span: Probably around 20 years in the wild.
Food: Haida Gwaii black bears are omnivorous. They forage in the intertidal zone for crabs, sea-urchins, beach hoppers, clams, mussels and barnacles. From spring to early summer much of their diet consists of green vegetation including sedges, nettles, fireweed, horsetail, rushes, ferns, cow parsnip, Pacific hemlock, beach lovage and skunk cabbage. From June onwards berries from an ever greater part of the bears’ diet until October when the bears move to the salmon spawning streams. The spawning period lasts around 45 days during which time the bears will accumulate something in the region of 70 percent of their annual protein intake.
Behaviour:. The bears typically hibernate for between three and five months, most commonly emerging in April or May. Dens are most commonly made in old-growth cedar forests in hollow trees or stumps. Pregnant females give birth in the den to between one and five cubs with two or three the norm. Cubs are usually born in January and will remain with their other for about one and a half years, during which time she will not become pregnant again.
Threats: Hunting is the major cause of Haida Gwaii black bear mortality.
www.bearconservation.org.uk/haida-gwaii-black-bear/ |
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Post by Gorilla king on Jul 24, 2021 18:39:09 GMT -5
NORTH AMERICAN BLACK BEAR mtDNA PHYLOGEOGRAPHY: IMPLICATIONS FOR MORPHOLOGY AND THE HAIDA GWAII GLACIAL REFUGIUM CONTROVERSY
Abstract
The controversial role of Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands) as a biological refugium on the northwestern coast of North America has been widely discussed for more than fifty years. The presence of morphologically divergent subspecies on Haida Gwaii is one of the major lines of evidence suggesting this archipelago's role as a refugium during the Wisconsin. However, since morphological distinction can be derived postglacially as well as in extended isolation, such evidence is ambiguous. To examine this question, we did a phylogenetic analysis of cytochrome b sequences (719 bp) of black bear (Ursus americanus), one of the distinctive endemics of Haida Gwaii, and compared these with conspecifics from across North America, focusing primarily on the northwestern coast. We found that the Haida Gwaii bear are indistinguishable from coastal bear of British Columbia and Vancouver Island, but are highly distinct from continental bear. Coastal and continental bears differ by 24 synapomorphies and an average sequence divergence of 3.6%. The coastal mitochondrial lineage occurs in each of the three recognized coastal subspecies suggesting that the morphological characteristics differentiating these taxa may be postglacially derived. The data are consistent with recent suggestions that a glacial refugium existed on the now submerged continental shelf connecting Haida Gwaii, Vancouver Island, and the coastal fringe of mainland British Columbia. This refugium would have been an additional source for postglacial recolonization of northwestern North America.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28568643/
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Post by Gorilla king on Jul 24, 2021 18:42:10 GMT -5
From the same source above:
"In addition to being the largest black bear in the world, Carlottae has a unique skull structure (a massive cranium and elongate rostrum) and proportionately large molars"
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Post by Gorilla king on Jul 24, 2021 18:44:14 GMT -5
Haida Gwaii black bear (Ursus americanus carlottae) 
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Post by Gorilla king on Jul 24, 2021 18:49:13 GMT -5
This B.C. archipelago has the largest black bears in the world
Not only are the black bears on Haida Gwaii larger than anywhere else in the province, but they are also bigger than any other black bears in the world.
British Columbia is considered "bear country" for a good reason: the province teems with bruins in a variety of shapes and sizes.
With this in mind, not every British Columbian has encountered a bear. In fact, many locals haven't even observed one from a distance. However, if they have seen one, there's a good chance that it was a black bear (even if it wasn't black).
That's right - the black bear, the most common of the three bears found in Canada, comes in a variety of colours and shades. Wild Safe B.C. notes that these bears come in, "everything from the white Kermode bear through to their namesake black and most shades of brown in between."
And while the black bears on Vancouver Island are considerably larger than their mainland cousins, they aren't the largest in the province. That title goes to their neighbours to the north on Haida Gwaii.
Not only are the black bears on Haida Gwaii larger than anywhere else in the province, but they are also bigger than any other black bears in the world.
Often seen foraging in the intertidal zone, these omnivorous animals play a vital role on the Islands. While they enjoy a variety of seafood, such as crabs, sea-urchins, and salmon, they also snack on green vegetation like cabbage, ferns, and nestles. In addition, the bears snack on berries in the spring and summer months. As apex predators, these bruins have few predators, except grizzlies, wolves, and each other.
Parks Canada notes that the Haida have long respected this animal, calling bears Taan, or “Brother of Man”. It notes that, "At Gwaii Haanas, it is our policy that if a bear becomes habituated to people, the area will be closed to people—we will remove the people, not the bears." As such, Parks Canada asks visitors to act responsibly in the wilderness.
According to iNaturalist, the black bears of Haida Gwaii are also considered a "keystone" species because of the, "bears' transportation of salmon remains into the surrounding forests of the Haida Gwaii."
www.vancouverisawesome.com/animals/black-bears-haida-gwaii-1946443
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Post by Gorilla king on Jul 24, 2021 18:53:18 GMT -5
MEET TAAN - HAIDA GWAII’S BLACK BEAR
HAIDA GWAII IS KNOWN WORLD-WIDE AS THE “GALÁPAGOS OF THE NORTH”, A MAGICAL PLACE WHERE HAIDA PEOPLE HAVE LIVED ON THE ISLANDS FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS.
Amidst the isolated, wild shorelines, the lush rainforests and the sandy beaches as far as the eye can see, the islands are home to a wide variety of unique flora and fauna. One animal, local to Haida Gwaii in particular is North America’s largest sub species of black bear, known as "taan" in the Haida language.
This magnificent black bear thrives on a nutrient-rich diet from the forests of Haida Gwaii and feasting on plants and animals of the intertidal zones. Over time taan developed especially large jaws and teeth, which has enabled them to easily eat whole crabs and barnacles while they forage on the beach. They also play a fundamental role in the development of Haida Gwaii's forests by facilitating an important role in its unique ecosystem. The bears habitually transport salmon remains into the surrounding woods, which ultimately becomes rich fertilizer for the Island's lush vegetation.
TAAN MYTHOLOGY
In Haida mythology, the bears are considered family. There is an old legend called “Bear Mother” or “Taan AwGa”. One day a young woman was picking berries but had found that the bears had eaten most of them. She became angry and blamed the bears for her unfortunate luck. The bears had heard her; they became agitated and stole her away. At first the young woman had missed her family and village. She found solace in the bear village, married bear father and had two bear cubs. Years later, the woman returned to her village to teach the people to respect the bears.
www.haidatourism.ca/news/blog-post-title-four-kp8hj
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Post by Gorilla king on Jul 24, 2021 19:00:45 GMT -5
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Post by oldindigosilverback on Jul 25, 2021 0:16:23 GMT -5
This American black bear is an exceptionally large subspecies of kind. According to Big Bons, they are bolder and more predatory than the average American black bear.
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Post by Gorilla king on Jul 25, 2021 6:07:02 GMT -5
This American black bear is an exceptionally large subspecies of kind. According to Big Bons, they are bolder and more predatory than the average American black bear. |
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Post by oldindigosilverback on Jul 25, 2021 6:51:52 GMT -5
This American black bear is an exceptionally large subspecies of kind. According to Big Bons, they are bolder and more predatory than the average American black bear. The average weight of the American black bears of Pennsylvania are between 400 to 500 pounds. Maybe that is the same for this subspecies. |
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Post by Gorilla king on Jul 25, 2021 8:44:01 GMT -5
Definitely yeah. I just wish we knew the average weight. The average weight of the American black bears of Pennsylvania are between 400 to 500 pounds. Maybe that is the same for this subspecies.
beargorillarealm.proboards.com/post/742/thread
The Haida Gwaii black bear should be larger, its in an island with plenty of salmon.
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Post by Gorilla king on Jul 17, 2022 3:13:34 GMT -5
BEAR ON SHORE HAIDA GWAII
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Post by Gorilla king on May 21, 2023 12:44:18 GMT -5
HAIDA GWAII BLACK BEAR:
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