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Post by Gorilla king on Jul 25, 2021 12:01:42 GMT -5
The Syrian brown bear was classified as subspecies Ursus arctos syriacus. in 1828 by naturalist Wilhelm Hemprich and zoologist Christian Ehrenberg.
HABITAT
The Syrian brown bear sleeps and hibernates in caves and hollow trees found in mountainous areas. Historically, the Syrian brown bear could be found in Turkey, Egypt, Israel, Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, northwestern Pakistan, and parts of the former Soviet Union. However, their number continues to decline and fragment because of habitat loss and poaching. They can no longer be found in Egypt, Israel, Lebanon, nor Syria.
CHARACTERISTICS
The Syrian brown bear weighs up to 550 pounds and measures anywhere from 40 to 55 inches from nose to tail. It is overall the smallest bear of the Ursus arctos species. The most common color is a very light greyish brown. The lighter colors usually appear at higher altitudes. They may have a dark brown patch on atop their heads, a white collar, and a dark stripe down the back. Their legs are commonly darker than the rest of their body. It is the only known bear in the world to have white claws.
There are some bears farther to the north that are believed to be a cross between Eurasian brown bears and Syrian brown bears. They are larger in size than the Syrain brown bears and have reddish brown fur.
DIET
Syrian brown bears are omnivorous creatures. They search for food in forests, grasslands, and meadows. They will eat almost any kind of food that is available to them such as meat, grass, nuts, and fruits. If they become hungery enough, they have been known to visit mountain villages. In search of food, they will attack livestock
BREEDING
Birth takes place during hibernation during the winter. Cubs are very small at birth, but grow quickly.
STATUS
The population of the Syrian brown bear continues to decline. It is already extinct in Egypt, Israel, Lebanon, and Syria, due to habitat loss and poaching. It may be close to extinction in the wild.
www.bearsoftheworld.net/syrian_brown_bear.asp
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Post by Gorilla king on Jul 25, 2021 12:06:18 GMT -5
The Syrian brown bear (Ursus arctos syriacus or Ursus arctos arctos)[1] is a relatively small subspecies of brown bear native to the Middle East and the Caucasus mountain range.[2]
Characteristics
The Syrian brown bear's fur is usually very light brown and straw-coloured.[3] The hair on the withers is longer with a grey-brown base and is often a different shade from the rest of the body, seen in some individuals as a dark stripe running across the back. The lighter colors usually appear at higher altitudes. Their legs are commonly darker than the rest of their body. It is the only known bear in the world to have white claws. It is a rather small brown bear. Adult males have skulls measuring approximately 30–40 cm (12–16 inches). The Syrian brown bear weighs up to 550 lb (250 kilograms), and measures from 101–140 cm (40–55 inches) from nose to tail.
Populations in the Caucasus were thought to belong to Ursus arctus syriacus and to overlap those of the Eurasian brown bear. They are larger in size and darker. In the past, some naturalists proposed that Caucasian bears belonged to hybrid populations between Eurasian and Syrian brown bears, but results of genetic studies show that all populations in the Caucasus are Eurasian brown bears.[1] It was thought that these mixed bears originated during the Holocene when Syrian brown bears supposedly migrated northward and interbred with the larger northern bears. Today, that hypothesis is considered by experts as wrong. Litter size ranges from one to three cubs.[4]
Distribution and habitat
Historically, the brown bear occurred in the Middle East from Turkey to Turkmenistan.[5][6] Today, the brown bear is extirpated in Jordan, Israel and the State of Palestine, and survives only in Turkey, Iran and Iraq.[7] In Syria, brown bear tracks were recorded in the snow in the Anti-Lebanon Mountains in 2004 for the first time in five decades. In February 2011, bear tracks were again recorded in this area.[8]
In Turkey, important habitats are Mediterranean belt forests, deciduous and conifer forests in the Black Sea region and northeastern Turkey, oak and pine forests in the hinterlands of the Black Sea, and dry forests in East Anatolia. In elevation, these habitats range from 500 to 2,700 m (1,600 to 8,900 ft).[9] In Iran, it is present in the Central Alborz Protected Area south of the Caspian Sea and in the Zagros Mountains.[4] In these regions, it prefers higher altitudes and northern aspects with access to water resources.[10]
Threats
In Turkey, the bear is threatened by large-scale forest fragmentation, degradation of habitat, and persecution in areas where it damages beehives and livestock. Local people in the Black Sea region hunt bears illegally for bear fat, which is thought to have medicinal value. Occasionally, bears are killed during hunts for wild boar using dogs, and by poisoned baits and snares set illegally for red deer, roe deer, wolf or lynx.[9]
In 2018, a sleeping Syrian brown bear was killed by Iraqi forces at the Iraq-Syria border.[11]
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrian_brown_bear
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Post by Gorilla king on Jul 25, 2021 12:08:34 GMT -5
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Post by Gorilla king on Jul 25, 2021 12:11:04 GMT -5
ENDANGERED: CAUCASIAN BROWN BEAR
They look endearing but these rare bears have had no escape from hunting and habitat loss. Only now are these little-understood creatures finally being protected
Found: The Caucasian or Syrian brown bear (Ursus arctos syriacus) is a subspecies of brown bear native to the Caucasus. Once common across the Middle East from Egypt to Pakistan, it is now extinct in many of those countries, including its eponymous home of Syria. Genetically speaking, this particular bear should probably not be regarded as a subspecies at all, but having said that, in size (it is the smallest of the brown bears) and colour (with generally lighter strawcoloured fur and, unusually, pale claws), it is quite distinct in appearance. It lives in the highland forests and occasionally in lowland woodlands in the hills and mountains of northern and southern Azerbaijan.
Under threat because: Caucasian brown bear numbers have suffered badly in recent decades as a result of trophy hunting and the trade in bear bile for Asian traditional medicine. Habitat destruction, too, is a major problem for bears, with the cutting down of forests for firewood and lumber. Brown bear population numbers may be stable across their global range, but this particular bear is seriously endangered in the region.
Outlook: Despite a particular Caucasian brown bear being one of the most famous bears in the world (Wojtek, a cub adopted by the Polish army in the Second World War before living out his days as a celebrity in Edinburgh Zoo), little has been done to halt their declining numbers. Special nature sanctuaries in Azerbaijan have provided safe havens, but there needs to be more research to establish population numbers and effectively combat the threats they face.
baku-magazine.com/conservation/endangered-caucasian-brown-bear/
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Post by Gorilla king on Jul 25, 2021 12:13:10 GMT -5
WOJTEK-THE BEAR THAT WENT TO WAR
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Post by Gorilla king on Jul 25, 2021 12:17:53 GMT -5
Wojtek (bear)
Wojtek (1942 – 2 December 1963; Polish pronunciation: [ˈvɔjtɛk]; in English, sometimes spelled Voytek and pronounced as such) was a Syrian brown bear[1][2] (Ursus arctos syriacus) bought, as a young cub, at a railway station in Hamadan, Iran, by Polish II Corps soldiers who had been evacuated from the Soviet Union. In order to provide for his rations and transportation, he was eventually enlisted officially as a soldier with the rank of private, and was subsequently promoted to corporal.[3]
In the spring of 1942 the newly formed Anders' Army left the Soviet Union for Iran, accompanied by thousands of Polish civilians who had been deported to the Soviet Union following the 1939 Soviet invasion of eastern Poland. At a railroad station in Hamadan, Iran, on 8 April 1942, Polish soldiers encountered a young Iranian boy who had found a bear cub whose mother had been shot by hunters. One of the civilian refugees in their midst, eighteen-year-old Irena (Inka) Bokiewicz, the great-niece of General Bolesław Wieniawa-Długoszowski, was very taken with the cub. She prompted Lieutenant Anatol Tarnowiecki to buy the young bear, which spent the next three months in a Polish refugee camp established near Tehran, principally under Irena's care.[4] In August, the bear was donated to the 2nd Transport Company, which later became the 22nd Artillery Supply Company, and he was named Wojtek by the soldiers. The name Wojtek is the nickname, diminutive form, or hypocorism of "Wojciech" (Happy Warrior), an old Slavic name still common in Poland.[5]
Wojtek initially had problems swallowing and was fed condensed milk from an old vodka bottle. He was subsequently given fruit, marmalade, honey, and syrup, and was often rewarded with beer, which became his favourite drink. He later also enjoyed smoking (or eating) cigarettes, as well as drinking coffee in the mornings. He also would sleep with the other soldiers if they were ever cold in the night.[6][7] He enjoyed wrestling with the soldiers and was taught to salute when greeted. He became an attraction for soldiers and civilians alike, and soon became an unofficial mascot to all the units stationed nearby. With the 22nd Company, he moved to Iraq, and then through Syria, Palestine, and Egypt.[2]
Wojtek copied the other soldiers, drinking beer, smoking and even marching alongside them on his hind legs because he saw them do so. Wojtek had his own caregiver, assigned to look after him. The cub grew up while on campaign, and by the time of the Battle of Monte Cassino he weighed 200 pounds (14 st; 91 kg).[8]
Private Wojtek
Wojtek with artillery shell: Emblem of 22nd Artillery Supply Company[9]
From Egypt, the Polish II Corps was reassigned to fight alongside the British Eighth Army in the Italian campaign. Regulations for the British transport ship, which was to carry them to Italy, forbade mascot and pet animals. To get around this restriction, Wojtek was officially drafted into the Polish Army as a private and listed among the soldiers of the 22nd Artillery Supply Company. Henryk Zacharewicz and Dymitr Szawlugo were assigned as his caretakers.
A standard 25-pounder ammunition crate, which held four shells
As an enlisted soldier with his own paybook, rank, and serial number, he lived with the other men in tents or in a special wooden crate, which was transported by truck. During the Battle of Monte Cassino, Wojtek helped his unit to convey ammunition by carrying 100-pound (45 kg) crates of 25-pound artillery shells, never dropping any of them. While this story generated controversy over its accuracy, at least one account exists of a British soldier recalling seeing a bear carrying crates of ammo.[10] The bear mimicked the soldiers: when he saw the men lifting crates, he copied them. Wojtek carried boxes that normally required 4 men, which he would stack onto a truck or other ammunition boxes.[11] This service at Monte Cassino earned him promotion to the rank of corporal. In recognition of Wojtek's popularity, a depiction of a bear carrying an artillery shell was adopted as the official emblem of the 22nd Company.[8]
Post war
Wojtek in Britain after the war
After the end of World War II in 1945, Wojtek was transported to Berwickshire, Scotland, with the rest of the 22nd Company. They were stationed at Winfield Airfield on Sunwick Farm, near the village of Hutton, Scottish Borders. Wojtek soon became popular among local civilians and the press, and the Polish-Scottish Association made him an honorary member.
Following demobilisation on 15 November 1947, Wojtek was given to Edinburgh Zoo, where he spent the rest of his life, often visited by journalists and former Polish soldiers, some of whom tossed cigarettes for him to eat, as he did during his time in the army. Media attention contributed to Wojtek's popularity. He was a frequent guest on BBC television's Blue Peter programme for children.[12]
Wojtek died in December 1963, at the age of 21, weighing nearly 500 kilograms (1,100 lb), and was over 1.8 metres (5.9 ft) tall.[13]
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wojtek_(bear)
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Post by Gorilla king on Jul 25, 2021 12:22:11 GMT -5
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Post by Gorilla king on Jul 25, 2021 12:25:50 GMT -5
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Post by tyrannosaurs on Aug 4, 2021 1:19:04 GMT -5
Species of the Week: Syrian brown bear: Each Wednesday, One Earth’s “Species of the Week” series highlights a relatively unknown and fascinating species to showcase the beauty, diversity, and remarkable characteristics of our shared planet Earth. Typically, endless sands dunes below a blazing sun comes to mind when one thinks of the wild Middle East, not the mountain slopes forested with juniper, meadows of bright flowers, and hedges of pistachio, almond, and maple carpeting the forest floor. Here living amongst the noble mouse-like hamster, jackal, red fox, wild sheep, mountain goats, lynx, and Persian leopard is the Syrian brown bear. They are the only bear known to have white claws and their distinct pale, straw-colored fur seems to provide the missing link between their polar and grizzly bear cousins. Stretching from Northern Iran’s lush range off the Caspian Sea, to the Caucasus mountains, and into Turkey, Syrian brown bears are quite small. Still a bear however, they can measure up to four and a half feet from nose to tail and weigh over 500 pounds. Omnivorous, these bears eat fruit, berries, seeds, plants, grasses, nuts, insects, and small mammals. With agricultural development ever further encroaching on their habitat, they have been spotted consuming grains, harvested nuts, and livestock. The species has had limited observation in the wild due to conflicts in the nations surrounding and making up its territory. Mating is believed to occur between May and July with cubs born around January or early February. Females build a winter den in caves or hollow trees, mostly commonly birch, to give birth and raise their young. Like all bears, Syrian brown bears play an important role in their environment. Dispersing pieces of the vegetation they consume, they help replant and fertilize the forest. As a predator, they keep mammal populations in balance and clean up carcasses. Keeping their ecosystem healthy and growing is vital to a region with excessive oil production, purifying the air and sequestering greenhouse gases. Yet, the species is threatened by large-scale deforestation, habitat degradation, and poaching. Native peoples to the region have differing views on the bears. Locals in the Black Sea region hunt illegally for their fat, which is has been proven not to have any medicinal value. Others living in the “Holy Land,” or those throughout Jordan and Syria, revere it as the bear to have been spoken of in the Hebrew Bible, referencing the protectiveness and love of a mother towards her offspring. Historically, Syrian brown bears did habit these countries along with Israel and Palestine, and even as far east at Turkmenistan, but were driven out. In 2004, the first time in sixty years, tracks were recorded in the snow in the Lebanese mountains and again in February 2011. A group of men in the Beqaa Valley in December 2016 reportedly filmed a female with her cub in the snow giving hope that the bear is reclaiming some of its former terrain. Syrian brown bears are the flagship species of theElburz Range Forest Steppe ecoregion, located in the South Caspian Coastal & Mountain Mixed Forests bioregion (PA28). www.oneearth.org/species-of-the-week-syrian-brown-bear/ |
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Post by Gorilla king on Jan 22, 2022 13:25:02 GMT -5
A preliminary baseline status of the Syrian Brown Bear Ursus arctos syriacus (Mammalia: Carnivora: Ursidae) in Golestanak, Northern Iran
Abstract: Baseline information is lacking for the Syrian Brown Bear across the sub-species range, making it difficult to assess at any level. In the present investigation, our goal was to illustrate the population status of the Brown Bear in the Golestanak area, northern Iran, based on field surveys we conducted during the summers of 2011 and 2012. We counted a total of 30 and 21 bears in two consecutive years, with family groups consisting of more than half of the identified individuals. Sub-adults had the lowest contribution among the observed individuals, just below 10%, which may be due to their high dispersal behaviour to avoid adults. Our results provide a foundation for future systematic baseline investigations on the population status of the brown bear in northern Iran, which can be used in management programs. Aside from improving monitoring efforts within key habitats of the species, enhancing conservation efforts to secure the population is essential to safeguard this female core area.
www.threatenedtaxa.org/index.php/JoTT/article/download/1787/3133?inline=1
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Post by Gorilla king on Apr 9, 2022 16:23:11 GMT -5
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Post by Gorilla king on Apr 18, 2023 19:32:39 GMT -5
Sexual dimorphism of Cranial shape in Iranian Brown Bear Ursus arctos Linnaeus, 1758 using Geometric Morphometric approach
Abstract and Figures
The Iranian brown bear is distributed in north, west and northwest of Iran. This research was conducted to study the sexual dimorphism of Iranian brown bear in Alborz and Caucasia population using Geometric Morphometric. Sixty two skulls were studied based on species distribution in country. There was a significant difference between male and female's skull shape confirming the presence of sexual dimorphism in the skull shape of Iranian brown bear. Comparison of shape of two sexes showed the reinforcement and strength different parts in males' skull. Dimorphism can also be related to the social ecology of brown bears.
www.researchgate.net/publication/273133390_Sexual_dimorphism_of_Cranial_shape_in_Iranian_Brown_Bear_Ursus_arctos_Linnaeus_1758_using_Geometric_Morphometric_approach
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Post by arctozilla on Oct 9, 2023 10:18:31 GMT -5
A Syrian brown bear in war? Wow. That's impressive because Syrian brown bears are one of the smallest brown bear subspecies.
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Post by arctozilla on Nov 17, 2023 14:24:52 GMT -5
I also found out interesting info about this bear. It used to deal with the Asiatic lion and the Caspian tiger. Carnivores of Syria "The species of large dimensions, such as the Asiatic lion, the Caspian tiger, the Asiatic cheetah, and the Syrian brown bear, became extinct in historical times, the last leopard being reputed to have been killed in 1963 on the Alauwit Mountains (Al Nusyriain Mountains)." zookeys.pensoft.net/articles.php?id=2126 |
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Post by Gorilla king on Jun 27, 2024 13:08:44 GMT -5
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