Grizzly Bear
 Grizzly
bears
(Ursus
arctos horribilis)
vary considerably in size depending on the area they inhabit. In the
NWT they are generally smaller than those
elsewhere. In the Mackenzie
Mountains, where winters are long and cold and the forage is sparse, the
heaviest male recorded in a 5-year study weighed only 214 kg.
Females are smaller than males and do not continue to gain weight
with age as males do.
Grizzly
bears are larger than black bears and more heavily built. They are usually recognizable in profile by the shape of the
snout, which is long and upturned rather than convex like that of a black
bear. Another distinguishing
feature is the prominent hump of muscle on the shoulders.
Grizzlies
have long shaggy coats with coarse guard hairs overlying a dense mat of underfur. Around the shoulders the
hair lengthens to form a ruff.
Colour varies from light gold to almost black, with pale bears being the most
common on the barren-lands.
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