Alaskan Bears

The smallest bear in Alaska is the black bear; it is also the most common bear in the state. They stay almost everywhere in Alaska except in the Seward Peninsula, which is in Western Alaska north from the Brooks Range. Black bears that live in the wild have a shorter life span, most of them live to be about 18 or 19 or to their early twenties. Their fur comes in many colors; it can be brown, black, cinnamon, or white. There also is a rare silver-tipped fur bear and when it is in the sunlight, its fur looks blue. This bear is called a glacier bear and they are very rare and only live in the region close to Yakutat, Alaska.

Brown bears live south of the Brooks mountain range in Alaska. They are bigger than black bears, adult brown bears weigh up to 1,000 pounds and females weigh about 500 pounds. The biggest brown bears weigh in at 1,400 pounds; however, a bear's weight changes depending on the seasons of the years. In the fall, they eat the most food because they need to get ready for winter hibernation. Brown bears can live to 40 years old in captivity and the ones in the wild can live to over 30.

The term "brown bear" refers to both grizzly bears and coastal brown bears, which are both of the same species. The grizzly lives inland and the brown bear spends its time on the coast, its food of choice being salmon. Grizzlies are a little smaller in size and the tip of their hair is light which give them a grizzled look.

The term "Kodiak" refers to brown bears that live on Kodiak Island, they eat many salmon, which appears to encourage growth and makes them the largest of the brown bears.

Brown bears eat many kinds of plants and animals, which makes them omnivorous and if necessary, they will eat whatever food is available, like human trash.

Anyone living in an area where bears live should know the difference between a black bear and a brown bear. Fur color will not help much because both bears have colors ranging from cinnamon to white to black. Black bears have a straight profile, large ears, short curved claws and no shoulder hump. Brown bears have smaller ears, a dish shaped profile, long straight claws and a hump on their shoulder.

Brown bears mate at the start of the summer and give birth to cubs in their den during the winter in January or February. They are born in litters of four; however, the most common size of a litter is two cubs. They have no hair when they are born and they weigh less than a pound. The cubs stay in the den all winter until spring arrives, then they exit the den with their mother. The cubs continue to stay with their mother until they are 2 or 3 years old and if they need food, they will stay longer.

Brown and Black may seem similar; however, there are some features that help tell them apart.