Kamchatka Brown Bear
Encyclopedia
The Kamchatka brown bear (Ursus arctos beringianus), also known as the Far Eastern brown bear, is a subspecies
of brown bear
, native to the Anadyrsky District
, the Kamchatka Peninsula
, Karaginskiy Island, the Kuril Islands
, the coastal strip west of the Sea of Okhotsk
southward to the Stanovoy Range and the Shantar Islands
. Outside the former Soviet Union, the subspecies occurs in Saint Lawrence Island in the Bering sea
. It is closely related to brown bears in Alaska
and northwest North America, and is thought to be the ancestor of the Kodiak bear
.
It is a very large subspecies, the largest in Eurasia, with a body length of 2.4 metres, to 3 metres tall on hind legs and a weight of 650 kg (1433 lbs) or more. It is nearly the size of the Kodiak bear
; however, the skull is broader than that of the Ussuri brown bear
, and compared to that of the Kodiak bear, the breadth of the skull is much greater in proportion to its length, the anterior narial opening is much shorter, and the molars differ in relative size and form. The greatest skull length for males is 40.3–43.6 cm and 25.8–27.7 cm wide, while the skulls of females measure 37.2–38.6 cm in length and 21.6–24.2 cm in width. Fur
colour is predominantly dark brown with a violet tint. Light coloured individuals are rarely encountered.
In the summer period, they feed on blueberries
, crowberries
, humpback salmon and salmon trout. In autumn, they eat nut
s from nut-pines and mountain ash, and fish
. In times of famine, they eat dead fish or marine mammals, berries and graminoid vegetation.
Kamchatka brown bears are generally not dangerous to humans, and only 1% of encounters result in attack. The first Europeans who went to Kamchatka in the 19th century, although surprised by the number and size of bears there, observed that they were relatively harmless compared to their Siberian counterparts. However, in July 2008, a platinum
mining compound in the Olyutorsky District
of Kamchatka Krai was besieged by a group of 30 bears who killed two guards and prevented workers from leaving their homes.
Kamchatka brown bears are among the most prized trophies for the Russian hunting industry. In 2005, the Kamchatka Department of Wildlife Management issued 500 hunting permits. Clients paid up to $10,000 to hunt bears. Thus, the economic impacts from recreational hunting of Kamchatka brown bears are significant.
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
of brown bear
Brown Bear
The brown bear is a large bear distributed across much of northern Eurasia and North America. It can weigh from and its largest subspecies, the Kodiak Bear, rivals the polar bear as the largest member of the bear family and as the largest land-based predator.There are several recognized...
, native to the Anadyrsky District
Anadyrsky District
Anadyrsky District is an administrative and municipal district , one of the six in Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, Russia. It is located in the interior portion of the autonomous okrug and in terms of administrative divisions borders with Chaunsky District in the northwest, Iultinsky District in the...
, the Kamchatka Peninsula
Kamchatka Peninsula
The Kamchatka Peninsula is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of . It lies between the Pacific Ocean to the east and the Sea of Okhotsk to the west...
, Karaginskiy Island, the Kuril Islands
Kuril Islands
The Kuril Islands , in Russia's Sakhalin Oblast region, form a volcanic archipelago that stretches approximately northeast from Hokkaidō, Japan, to Kamchatka, Russia, separating the Sea of Okhotsk from the North Pacific Ocean. There are 56 islands and many more minor rocks. It consists of Greater...
, the coastal strip west of the Sea of Okhotsk
Sea of Okhotsk
The Sea of Okhotsk is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, lying between the Kamchatka Peninsula on the east, the Kuril Islands on the southeast, the island of Hokkaidō to the far south, the island of Sakhalin along the west, and a long stretch of eastern Siberian coast along the west and...
southward to the Stanovoy Range and the Shantar Islands
Shantar Islands
The Shantar Islands are a group of fifteen islands that lie in Uda Bay, in the southwestern zone of the Sea of Okhotsk. These islands are located close to the shores of the Siberian mainland...
. Outside the former Soviet Union, the subspecies occurs in Saint Lawrence Island in the Bering sea
Bering Sea
The Bering Sea is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean. It comprises a deep water basin, which then rises through a narrow slope into the shallower water above the continental shelves....
. It is closely related to brown bears in Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
and northwest North America, and is thought to be the ancestor of the Kodiak bear
Kodiak Bear
The Kodiak bear , also known as the Kodiak brown bear or the Alaskan grizzly bear or American brown bear, occupies the islands of the Kodiak Archipelago in South-Western Alaska. Its name in the Alutiiq language is Taquka-aq. It is the largest subspecies of brown bear.- Taxonomy :Taxonomist C.H...
.
It is a very large subspecies, the largest in Eurasia, with a body length of 2.4 metres, to 3 metres tall on hind legs and a weight of 650 kg (1433 lbs) or more. It is nearly the size of the Kodiak bear
Kodiak Bear
The Kodiak bear , also known as the Kodiak brown bear or the Alaskan grizzly bear or American brown bear, occupies the islands of the Kodiak Archipelago in South-Western Alaska. Its name in the Alutiiq language is Taquka-aq. It is the largest subspecies of brown bear.- Taxonomy :Taxonomist C.H...
; however, the skull is broader than that of the Ussuri brown bear
Ussuri Brown Bear
The Ussuri brown bear , also known as the black grizzly is a subspecies of the brown bear found in the Ussuri krai, Sakhalin, the Amur Oblast, northward to the Shantar Islands, Iturup Island, northeastern China, the Korean peninsula, Hokkaidō and Kunashiri Island. This subspecies is thought to be...
, and compared to that of the Kodiak bear, the breadth of the skull is much greater in proportion to its length, the anterior narial opening is much shorter, and the molars differ in relative size and form. The greatest skull length for males is 40.3–43.6 cm and 25.8–27.7 cm wide, while the skulls of females measure 37.2–38.6 cm in length and 21.6–24.2 cm in width. Fur
Fur
Fur is a synonym for hair, used more in reference to non-human animals, usually mammals; particularly those with extensives body hair coverage. The term is sometimes used to refer to the body hair of an animal as a complete coat, also known as the "pelage". Fur is also used to refer to animal...
colour is predominantly dark brown with a violet tint. Light coloured individuals are rarely encountered.
In the summer period, they feed on blueberries
Blueberry
Blueberries are flowering plants of the genus Vaccinium with dark-blue berries and are perennial...
, crowberries
Crowberry
Crowberry is a small genus of dwarf evergreen shrubs that bear edible fruit. They are commonly found in the northern hemisphere, from temperate to subarctic climates, and also in the Southern Andes of South America and on the South Atlantic islands of South Georgia, the Falklands and Tristan da...
, humpback salmon and salmon trout. In autumn, they eat nut
Nut
Nut may refer to:* En dash or nut, traditionally half the width of an em dash* Nut , a piece of metal wedged into a rock* Nut , the large, usually oily seed of some plants...
s from nut-pines and mountain ash, and fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
. In times of famine, they eat dead fish or marine mammals, berries and graminoid vegetation.
Kamchatka brown bears are generally not dangerous to humans, and only 1% of encounters result in attack. The first Europeans who went to Kamchatka in the 19th century, although surprised by the number and size of bears there, observed that they were relatively harmless compared to their Siberian counterparts. However, in July 2008, a platinum
Platinum
Platinum is a chemical element with the chemical symbol Pt and an atomic number of 78. Its name is derived from the Spanish term platina del Pinto, which is literally translated into "little silver of the Pinto River." It is a dense, malleable, ductile, precious, gray-white transition metal...
mining compound in the Olyutorsky District
Olyutorsky District
Olyutorsky District is an administrative and municipal district of Koryak Okrug of Kamchatka Krai, Russia; one of the eleven in the krai. Its administrative center is the rural locality of Tilichiki. District's population: Population of Tilichiki accounts for 29.4% of the district's population....
of Kamchatka Krai was besieged by a group of 30 bears who killed two guards and prevented workers from leaving their homes.
Kamchatka brown bears are among the most prized trophies for the Russian hunting industry. In 2005, the Kamchatka Department of Wildlife Management issued 500 hunting permits. Clients paid up to $10,000 to hunt bears. Thus, the economic impacts from recreational hunting of Kamchatka brown bears are significant.