Brown Bear

Description:

This large and powerful bear (may weigh up to 1500 pounds) is, as its name implies, brown although some can be very dark and others light. They are armed with formidable strength, long claws, and powerful jaws. The brown bear and grizzly bears are often considered as subspecies of the brown bear. Brown bears are generally thought of as coastal while the grizzlies are considered interior bears. Coastal browns are generally larger than the interior grizzlies as they feed extensively on calorie-rich salmon.

Habitat:

Coastal forests and salmon-bearing rivers along the coast of British Columbia, Alaska, and Russia.

Notes:

This particular brown bear is a sow weighing about 600 pounds. I ran across her while she was feeding on chum (dog) salmon in a small stream in Alaska's panhandle. She surprised me by leaping from the brush on the far side of the stream and running through the river right at me. It was a bit of an adrenaline rush to say the least as I thought she was in a full-fledged charge. Halfway across the stream she dove into the water and pulled out a large salmon. She hesitated for a few seconds, looking at me while the big fish thrashed about, and then turned to take her prize back into the alder thickets that lined the stream banks to eat in peace. I was so excited that I forgot to photo her, but fortunately she reappeared some time later so I was able to snap this picture, among others.