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KodiakBearsBearsOfTheWorld

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Kodiakbearsarethelargestsubspeciesofthebrownbear.Theyhavelivedisolatedfromother
bearsforover10,000years.TheywererecognizedassubspeciesUrsusarctosmiddendorffibyC.
HartMerriumin1896.

AMERICAN
HABITAT
BLACKBEARS Inthewild,Kodiakbearsarefoundonlyon
theislandsintheKodiakArchipelagooffthe
BROWN
southcoastofAlaska.Theyarebelievedto
BEARS
havebeenisolatedtheresincethelastIceAge
over10,000yearsago.Becauseofthe
abundanceoffoodonKodiakIsland,they
ASIATIC
BLACKBEARS havesmallerhomerangesthananyother
brownbearsandhavenoneedtodefend
POLARBEARS territories.
CHARACTERISTICS
GIANTPANDA TheaverageadultmaleKodiakbearstands
BEARS
fivefeetattheshoulderwhenonallfourand
canmeasureover10feetwhenstandingupright.Theaveragemaleweighsfrom1000to1200
SLOTHBEARS pounds.Betweenthespringtimewhentheyleavehibernationandthefall,theirweightcanincrease
bymorethan50percent.Femalesareabout20percentsmallerinsizeandweigh30percentlighter
SPECTACLED thanmales.Kodiakbearsvaryincolorfrombeigetodarkbrown.AlthoughthereareKodiakbears
BEARS
onrecordforhavingdimensionsmeasuringlargerthanthatofthepolarbears',thepolarbearon
averageisstillbyfarthelargestspeciesofbearalive.Bearsthatdieofnaturalcauseslivetobe20to
SUNBEARS 25yearsonaverage.
URSIDAE

DIET
Kodiakbearsareomnivorous(eatingavarietyoffoods).Thebear'slargesizeismainlyduetothe

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CLASSIFICATION

abundanceoffoodreadilyavailabletothem
onKodiakIsland.Ingeneral,Kodiakbearsare
solitarycreatures,thoughtheyoftenfeedin
largegroupswhenfoodisplentiful.

CONTACT
BEAR
RESOURCES

Afterhibernation,theyfeedonvegetationand
animalsthatdiedthepastwinter.Startingin
May,thebearsfeastonasalmonrunthatlasts
intoOctober.AllfivespeciesofPacific
salmonrunwildthroughoutmostofKodiak
Archipelago.Fishareanimportantpartof
theirdiet.However,Kodiakbearswillmore
oftenspendtheirtimefeedingonvegetation
ratherthanputinthetimeandeffortrequired
tokillanimals.Theyalsofeedonseveral
typesofberries,seaweed,andinvertebrates.
$23.99

BREEDING&HIBERNATION
Kodiakbearsreachsexualmaturityatabout5yearsofage,butmostfemalesdon'thaveany
offspringuntiltheyareabout9.ThematingseasonoccursinMayandJune.Twoorthreecubsare
bornthenextJanuaryorFebruaryduringhibernation.Theyweighlessthanapoundatbirth,butwill
weigh15to20poundswhentheyleavethedeninMayorJune.Thecubsusuallystaywiththeir
motherfor3years.Femalesreproduceaboutevery4yearsthroughoutmostoftheirlives.
MostKodiakbearsdigtheirdensinmountainsides.Pregnantsowsarethefirsttobeginhibernating
inlateOctober.Malesarethelasttobeginhibernatingandthefirsttoemerge,inApril.Females
withoffspringsometimesdon'temergeuntillateJune.About25percentofadultmalesremain
activethroughoutthewinteranddon'thibernateatall.
STATUS
Thereareapproximately3,500bearsthatinhabittheKodiakArchipelago.Theirnumberhasbeen
slowlyincreasinginrecentyears.Kodiakbearsareprotectedbythefederalgovernment.Huntingis
permitted,butstrictlyregulated.AlaskaFishandGameonlyissues325huntingpermitsannuallyout
ofabout5,000Alaskannativesthatapply.Allnonresidentsarerequiredtobeaccompaniedbya
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professionalguide.Nonresidentialhuntinglicensesare
$10,000to$15,000.Eachyear,about160bearsarekilled.
TheKodiakNationalWildlifeRefugecoverstwothirdsof
KodiakIsland,UganikIsland,BanIsland,andtheRed
PeaksareaofAfognak,totalingroughly3,000squaremiles
ofprotectedhabitat.

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