November 4, 2022 • 23 mins
They can be black, blond, gray, or different shades of brown, but their distinct shoulder hump gives them away. We’re highlighting the brown bear also known as the grizzly bear! Hosts Rick and Ebone uncover how the environment of the last of North America’s brown bear can affect its diet, sleep patterns, and size. Hali O'Connor, Senior Wildlife Care Specialist, later sits down to reveal little-known facts about this intelligent, curious, and skilled omnivore.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hi, I'm Epne Moone and I'm Rick Schwartz. Welcome to
Amazing Wildlife, where we explore unique stories of wildlife from
around the world and uncover fascinating animal facts. This podcast
is a production of I Heart Radio and San Diego
Zoo Wildlife Alliance, in international nonprofit conservation organization behind the
(00:22):
San Diego Zoo and Safari Park. Brown bears, also known
as grizzly bears, can stand on two legs, walk on
the soles of their feet, and pick up things with
their paws. Today we're talking about the highly adaptable species. Rick,
I'm excited about this episode. If I were to take
a quiz about the animals we've discussed so far, I
(00:45):
would have gotten the best score on my knowledge of
the brown bear. But there's still so much that I
didn't know, and so many things that surprised me. For instance,
it was once thought that there were eighties six different
kinds of brown bears in North America, but today scientists
agree there's only one. That's a big difference, right. How
(01:07):
did it come to be that it went from scientists
thinking that there were possibly eighty six to narrowing it
down to one. Well, let any While it does make
sense that we would assume bears of the same species
would all look similar everything from size and coloring, even
what they eat, but when it comes to the brown
bear or grizzly bear, it really depends on location. They
(01:30):
can range from light sandy brownish blonde to almost blackish
dark brown in colorations, and when it comes to size,
while that's quite a range too, anywhere from two hundred
and fifty pounds to over one thousand, five hundred pounds,
again depending upon location, if they're male or female, in
what season it is. We see differences like this in
many species that have adapted to live in specific ecosystems
(01:51):
across the ranges that they inhabit, and in some cases
these differences are significant enough to create genetic variations, and
that can sometimes as mean they become subspecies, not just
a slight variation or difference of the same animal. In
the case of the brown bears, some scientists think breaking
them into several different subspecies would be more appropriate, where
others say the slight physical variations aren't enough to do that.
(02:15):
In general, it's agreed that the brown bear that resides
on the Kodiak Archipelago known as the Kodiak brown bears
or Alaskan brown bears are definitely a unique subspecies of
brown bear, and all other brown bears or grizzly bears
are a single subspecies instead of many different subspecies. Right,
Since brown bears can vary in color, as you mentioned
(02:35):
in size and habitat, are there any telltale signs that
a bear is a brown bear and not just another
species um such as a black bear. You're right, Ebony,
Since color variations happen a lot with brown bears, and
some can look black in color, we can usually make
sure that we're distinguishing the true brown bear by their
(02:56):
large hump of muscle on top of their shoulders. Of course,
younger bears made not have developed their muscular hump yet,
so sometimes it can be hard to say for certain
if it's a brown bear or a black bear. So
unless you study bears and can really pick up on
some of the subtle differences that you might see in
the body, sheep, or head structure, it can be hard
to tell. Rick. I hear people referring to the bears
(03:16):
as grizzly bears and as brown bears, almost using the
words interchangeably. Is it true? That the grizzly bears are
brown bears, but not all brown bears are grizzly bears,
if that makes any sense. Yes, evany the old conundrum
of the name game. When it comes to wildlife. Now,
it is common that we see a single species with
(03:38):
different common names due to being found across many different regions. Therefore,
the humans that live in those regions give them different names.
A great example of this is the puma, mountain lion,
and cougar, all the same species of cat, but because
different cultures refer to them with different common names, they
have all these different names. Now, when it comes to
the grizzly bear versus brown bear con under him in
(04:00):
North America, the common name of brown bear is usually
saved for those in coastal areas with access to marine
life and other coastal resources as part of their food source,
whereas the bears that are considered grizzly bears usually live
inland and do not have access to coastal or marine
food resources. And at this time many consider the grizzly
(04:20):
bear a subspecies of the brown bear, much like the
kodiak bear is a subspecies. So yes, grizzly bears are
a type of brown bear, but not all brown bears
are grizzly bears. Rick the name grizzly really stands out.
How did brown bears in North America come to be
referred to as grizzly bears? Well, this is actually kind
of interesting, eveny. There are two schools of thought on
(04:42):
how the name grizzly bear came about. Well, many say
the grizzly bear is named because its hair is grizzled
spelled g r i z z l e ed. Grizzled
hair is defined as sort of that dark hair that
has silvery or light colored tips or sprinkles of gray,
so hence the name grizzly bear. That's kind of how
the coat looks. While others say that it comes from
(05:03):
the term grizzlies spelled g r i s l y
this means horrible, gruesome, or fear inspiring. Personally, I'm team
grizzly with disease because I don't think they're that horrible
or gruesome. I think it's just, you know, they've got
a cool hairstyle. Where can you find brown bears? Where
then they found in nature? What's their living range? This
(05:23):
one might be a surprise for some people Ebony. Currently,
brown bears can be found in parts of Europe, Asia,
and northwest North America. There was a time when they
were abundant across the northern Hemisphere, with populations found in
the Middle East and the Atlas Mountain ranges of Northern
Africa as well. That seems like a really big range.
Is that unusual? How did brown bears come to have
(05:46):
such a large rage? Oh, They're very resourceful ebony and
have been able to adapt to a variety of ecosystems,
from coastal to mountain ranges, from very very cold climates
to even milder, almost swampy climates. This kind of adaptability
has allowed them to successfully thrive in many areas, and
scientists attribute the brown bears distribution to their ancestors at
(06:08):
this time. Fossil records indicate that the brown bear of
today evolved from a now extinct species of cave bear
that was native to Europe and Asia. With brown bears
adapting so well to new environments, they took advantage of
opportunities to move into areas where their cave bear ancestors
did not inhabit, including taking advantage of the land bridge
that once connected the northeastern corner of Asia to the
(06:31):
northwestern corner of North America. And Rick, as you mentioned,
these brown bears occupy a wider range of habitats than
any other bear. Their range overlaps with the American in
Asiatic black bear and also slightly that of the polar bear.
How has um this range? Has it changed over time?
(06:52):
Has it expanded or are fronk over time? Oh? Yeah,
their range has changed quite a bit, from being found
in almost every part of the northern hemisphere too much
smaller pockets of population. Today. In the United States, the
heaviest concentration of brown bears occurs in Alaska. Their range,
though in the lower forty eight States, is now reduced
to less than one percent of its historical scope. While
(07:14):
in Europe, the mountains of Romania are considered to have
the largest population of brown bears remaining, and in Asia,
while the largest population there is found in the eastern
and northeastern portions of Russia. Rick, what about the brown
bears population size? You've mentioned that their numbers are smaller
today than they were in the past. What's been the
(07:35):
pattern over time? Well? Although their population is significantly lower
than their historic populations. Most research shows us that their
current population is held at a stable number for a while. Now.
The biggest influence to brown bear populations is a growing
human population and encroachment into the bear's habitat. If we
can continue to coexist with the brown bear, we should
(07:57):
be able to see their population stay stable in the future. Rick,
how does the location of the habitat that the bear
is in? How does that influence the brown bears behavior
when it comes to things like food choices. Remember ebony
I said that brown bears are very resourceful and the
fact that they are omnivores, meaning that they eat meat
and plant materials, allows for them to adapt to different
(08:20):
environments and different seasons. For example, in the spring, they'll
feed on grass and young shoots of different plants. In
the summer they'll eat berries and available fruit, while in
the autumn they'll consume nuts and other seed based plant
materials like acorns. Now additionally, they'll eat reptiles, small mammals, insects, roots,
honey when it's available and depending upon location. Brown bears
(08:40):
also feed upon larger mammals such as moose and elk,
while other populations of brown bear will take advantage of
salmon migrating up rivers and streams. Speaking of brown bears
eating fish, besides images of maybe brown bears gathered together
in water catching fish, they seem like they're pretty solitary.
Are they Are they solitary or they consider more social? Well,
(09:01):
it's true. I mean brown bears will congregate when food
sources are abundant, whether it's a whole bunch of berries
on a hillside finally becoming right at the same time,
or like you mentioned, when they go fishing because of
fish are migrating, and although a dominance based hierarchy involving
usually aggression is established in those moments, they aren't really
considered social like a pride of lions or a pack
of wolves. Brown bears are considered solitary, with males and
(09:25):
females only coming together for breeding purposes, and of course
then the female brown bear raises the cubs, but once
they mature, they're on their own, So technically these brown
bears are considered solitary. You mentioned cubs. For how many
years will a mama bear raise and protect her cub well,
depending upon the subspecies of brown bear, cubs will stay
(09:46):
with their mother anywhere from two to three years, and
in that time the mother protects them from other brown
bears and teaches them everything they need to know to
head out on their own and be a brown bear.
Now it's worth noting the mother will not mate and
does not have more cubs until her current offspring are
well on their own, Rick, brown bears serve a fascinating
role in their ecosystem. Can you explain how they help
(10:08):
keep everything balanced? Well, you're right, Ebony. They do play
a very important role in whatever ecosystem they're living in.
For example, when bears eat fruit while they're scat, disperses
the seed which helps the habitat continue to grow. And
when they dig for food like roots and tubers, plant
bulbs and rodents while they stir up the soil and
kind of help areat things releasing nitrogen into the ground
(10:30):
and keeps that habitat healthy. In the spring. Brown bears
will even eat young calves of bison, elk, and moose,
even other wildlife, which helps keep those populations in check.
It is fair to say, being large omnivores, that brown
bears serve many roles in keeping their ecosystem balanced. Coming up,
we'll talk to Holly O'Connor. She's a senior Wildlife care
(10:50):
specialist with the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance that's coming
up right after this. Now it's time for the San
Diego's a Minute, an opportunity for you to learn what's
new at the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. A new
study sheds light on global conservation efforts for rhinoceros. The
(11:12):
study was conducted by Stellenbosch University Animal Tuberculosis Research Group,
South African National Parks of Veterinary Wildlife Services in San
Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. They tested samples from more than
four hundred rhinos in Kruger National Park. Results revealed the
presence of a pathogen that causes bovine tuberculosis in an
estimated of black and white rhinos studied. The new study
(11:35):
has had significant implications for the parks rhino conservation and
management strategies as it gives a better understanding of how
domestic animals may or may not impact the health of
wildlife in the area. Did you know newborn brown bear
cubs produce a loud, continuous humming sound while nursing, which
is believed to help stimulate their mother's milk production. This
(11:58):
noise is so loud it can be heard from outside
the din. Brown bears have been in the care of
the San Diego Zoo for more than a century. Now
we're going to talk to senior wildlife care specialist Holly
O'Connor about brown bears. Hi. Holly, Hi, So we're talking
(12:22):
about brown bears today, but you work with more than
the brown bear. You also work with other bears, including
the sun bear. But what makes the brown bear special
in unique and stand out from other bear species so ebony.
They are just like every bear, It is adapted to
survive in its own unique environment, and the brown bear
(12:44):
in particular is more of a terrestrial bear. It is
the second largest of the bear species. There's eight bear species,
and some of their unique adaptations to survive are extra
long claws and an extra large muscle mass around their shoulders.
Both of those features allow them to be expert diggers
(13:07):
where they can dig up rodents and tubers and roots
and also make their winter dens with those powerful fore limbs.
And you mentioned powerful grizzly bears way upwards of seven
hundred pounds, and as you mentioned, their muscular and they
have these long claws, How do you care for an
(13:29):
animal as large and powerful as a grizzly bear. So, yes,
it is true that brown bears are large and powerful animals,
and certainly we need to keep those features in mind
when we're caring for these amazing animals. But just as
much as you would take care in caring for a
(13:50):
grizzly bear, you would also take care in caring for
a mouse. You need to know your species. You need
to know its behavior, what it's capable of, and how
it could put atually cause harm. So in the case
of our bears, we use what's called protected contact. We
never go in with our bears. We have a safe
barrier between us and the animals. We can get up
(14:12):
close to them in this protected setting, but we would
never cross that barrier where we could potentially get injured.
The San Diego Zoo is home to two grizzly bear
brothers Scout in Montana. How did Scout in Montana come
to call the San Diego Zoo home? So Scout in Montana, unfortunately,
(14:33):
where the product of finding food in campsites in their
native habitat in Yellowstone Territory. Their mother bear was doing
what a good mother bear does and teaching their cubs
or her cubs where all of the food resources are
in the environment. And because people had several times left
(14:55):
food in their campsites and didn't follow the park rules,
the bears were attracted to those food items and came
into close contact with human areas. Fortunately nobody got hurt,
but the park system does have like a three strike
bear policy and if a bear continues to do this behavior,
(15:15):
they do need to relocate the animals. With the case
of Scout in Montana, their mother bear had a few
incidents and now she was teaching two more bears that
they could find food in camps So the entire family
did have to leave Yellowstone and we received Scout in
Montana as rescue cubs when they were ten months old
(15:36):
and their mama went to another facility. Wow, ten months old.
Can you talk about the type of bond that develops
after all that time and just how well you get
to know the animal as a wildlife care specialist, specifically
for Scout in Montana, do they have like detectable personalities? Absolutely? Um,
(15:58):
Just like any creature are unique to their species and
unique from each other. Scout in Montana, I've had the
pleasure of working with them since they did come to
us at ten months of age, so fifteen years we've
worked together. And I just tell you, like Scout is
a little bit more of the little brother. He seems
(16:18):
to rely on Montana a bit for protection and for reassurance,
and Montana does act a little bit like the big
brother protecting him. I'd even heard a story from one
of the people that had rescued the two cubs. They
were actually captured in a trap to be able to
be removed out of Yellowstone, and Scout, unfortunately, he escaped
(16:40):
the trap and he got injured. We believe in the
process he injured his jaw, but the staff were able
to recapture him, thankfully, And when they were in the
facility being held, Montana did kind of barricade himself around
Scout and act as a protector towards him. So At
started with them early on, and now they're adults and
(17:04):
they they have their own requests and needs, and Scout really,
really really likes food, and Montana of course loves food too.
But he's a little bit more seasonal than Scout in
that he kind of takes to the seasons. He gets
sleepier sooner than Scout does and is a little bit
(17:25):
more relaxed about things. So, speaking of that, what might
an observant whilife care specialists learn from just watching Scout
in Montana and how they interact and what cues might
they be able to pick up on. Can you tell,
for instance, if one is having a bad day? Oh? Definitely. Um.
(17:45):
They are very expressive in many many ways. And as
a wildlife care specialist, it is absolutely my job to
pay attention to the bears and pick up on the
cues that they give us on their needs and their wants,
so that they can have a healthy life, so that
we can provide for them stimulations that they can elicit
(18:07):
their own natural bear behaviors. So we tried to um
a look at their natural history and understand what do
these bears do in the wild at different times of
the year, and then we try to provide experiences that
mimic those those events. But by the same token, we
pick our cues up from the actual bears, because they're
(18:28):
going to dictate the types of things that are interested in,
the types of foods and the types of activities. So
Grizzly bears once roamed throughout the entire western United States
and south into Mexico. Unfortunately, they're no longer found in
about of their original habitat. What happened humans as they
(18:50):
were exploring the country and moving west, they were competing
for resources with the bears. And this is a big,
power full animal that can be very dangerous when it
comes in close contact with humans. So as humans created
roads and settlements and kind of pushed the bears out
of those areas, and or the bears were still there
(19:16):
and people eradicated them. They didn't want to share the
space with the bears and it would probably be dangerous
if they tried. So the bears got pushed further and
further into the wilderness, and that is why they are
more secluded into an area where there still is plenty
of room for them to roam and gain resources. It's
really about resources, So grizzly bears are federally listed as threatened.
(19:43):
What can be done to improve their ability to coexist
with humans? Bears need a lot of space and they
need to be left alone and allowed to find all
of the resources they need to survive in their environment,
especially in a place like Yellowstone where there's about six
months of the year where there's no food for them,
(20:05):
So they're going to need to have spring, summer, and
fall to wander throughout their entire habitat, access the foods
that are available at the different seasons, and when they're
in their most nutritious state and consume as much of
those food sources as they can, then they move on
to the next source until they have gained enough weight
(20:26):
so that they can go into their winter torpor commonly
called hibernation and basically live off of those fat reserves.
So when we disrupt their ability to find their resources
and build up those fat reserves, it really impacts the
bears and their abilities to survive. So we want to
have protected land for them that's uninterrupted, it's not fragmented.
(20:50):
If you build roads and you drill for oil in
bare habitat, that's going to disrupt their ability to get
their resources that they need to survive. Another thing that
people need to be aware of, of course, when you're
in bear country is following the park rules where you
lock up your food when you're hiking. You want to
make noise so that you don't surprise the bears. And
(21:11):
then this is still true today, will probably always be true. Reduce, reuse, recycle.
Anytime you can conserve natural resources, that helps bears. Because
there's less drilling for oil cutting down the trees, you're
saving wood products. Plastic is made from oil, so if
you can serve your plastic, that benefits the bears as well.
(21:33):
What would you say has been the best part about
working with brown bears? Bears in general are just amazing animals,
and the brown bears, the Grizzly Bear Scout in Montana,
they teach me things every day. I enjoy them so
much because they're very seasonal, even in our mild California climate.
(21:53):
They feel those seasons and they want different things at
different times of the year, and it's just so much
fun to pick up on those cues and provide these
things for them so that they can do their bare behaviors.
And when bears do bear behaviors, people watch that they
can feel a connection to them and hopefully have interest in,
(22:15):
you know, protecting them. We've been talking with senior wildlife
care specialist Holly O'Connor. Thanks Holly, thank you, Evity, thanks
for listening. We hope you've enjoyed learning about the brown bear,
also known as the Grizzly Bear, and be sure to
subscribe and tune into next week's episode, in which we
bring you the story of an animal that has the
(22:37):
word sloth in its name, but it's not related to
sloss and you can outrun a human. I'm Ebdemone and
I'm Rich Schwartz. Thanks for listening. If you would like
to find out more about San Diego Zoo Wildlack Alliance,
please visit sdz w a dot org Amazing Wildlife. As
(22:57):
a production of I Heart Radio, our producer isn't A
key A Swinton and our executive producer is Marcia de Peanut.
Our audio engineer and editor is Sierra Spreen. For more
shows from My Heart Radio, check out the I Heart
Radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you listen to your
favorite shows.
Hi, I'm Epne Moone and I'm Rick Schwartz. Welcome to
Amazing Wildlife, where we explore unique stories of wildlife from
around the world and uncover fascinating animal facts. This podcast
is a production of I Heart Radio and San Diego
Zoo Wildlife Alliance, in international nonprofit conservation organization behind the
(00:22):
San Diego Zoo and Safari Park. Brown bears, also known
as grizzly bears, can stand on two legs, walk on
the soles of their feet, and pick up things with
their paws. Today we're talking about the highly adaptable species. Rick,
I'm excited about this episode. If I were to take
a quiz about the animals we've discussed so far, I
(00:45):
would have gotten the best score on my knowledge of
the brown bear. But there's still so much that I
didn't know, and so many things that surprised me. For instance,
it was once thought that there were eighties six different
kinds of brown bears in North America, but today scientists
agree there's only one. That's a big difference, right. How
(01:07):
did it come to be that it went from scientists
thinking that there were possibly eighty six to narrowing it
down to one. Well, let any While it does make
sense that we would assume bears of the same species
would all look similar everything from size and coloring, even
what they eat, but when it comes to the brown
bear or grizzly bear, it really depends on location. They
(01:30):
can range from light sandy brownish blonde to almost blackish
dark brown in colorations, and when it comes to size,
while that's quite a range too, anywhere from two hundred
and fifty pounds to over one thousand, five hundred pounds,
again depending upon location, if they're male or female, in
what season it is. We see differences like this in
many species that have adapted to live in specific ecosystems
(01:51):
across the ranges that they inhabit, and in some cases
these differences are significant enough to create genetic variations, and
that can sometimes as mean they become subspecies, not just
a slight variation or difference of the same animal. In
the case of the brown bears, some scientists think breaking
them into several different subspecies would be more appropriate, where
others say the slight physical variations aren't enough to do that.
(02:15):
In general, it's agreed that the brown bear that resides
on the Kodiak Archipelago known as the Kodiak brown bears
or Alaskan brown bears are definitely a unique subspecies of
brown bear, and all other brown bears or grizzly bears
are a single subspecies instead of many different subspecies. Right,
Since brown bears can vary in color, as you mentioned
(02:35):
in size and habitat, are there any telltale signs that
a bear is a brown bear and not just another
species um such as a black bear. You're right, Ebony,
Since color variations happen a lot with brown bears, and
some can look black in color, we can usually make
sure that we're distinguishing the true brown bear by their
(02:56):
large hump of muscle on top of their shoulders. Of course,
younger bears made not have developed their muscular hump yet,
so sometimes it can be hard to say for certain
if it's a brown bear or a black bear. So
unless you study bears and can really pick up on
some of the subtle differences that you might see in
the body, sheep, or head structure, it can be hard
to tell. Rick. I hear people referring to the bears
(03:16):
as grizzly bears and as brown bears, almost using the
words interchangeably. Is it true? That the grizzly bears are
brown bears, but not all brown bears are grizzly bears,
if that makes any sense. Yes, evany the old conundrum
of the name game. When it comes to wildlife. Now,
it is common that we see a single species with
(03:38):
different common names due to being found across many different regions. Therefore,
the humans that live in those regions give them different names.
A great example of this is the puma, mountain lion,
and cougar, all the same species of cat, but because
different cultures refer to them with different common names, they
have all these different names. Now, when it comes to
the grizzly bear versus brown bear con under him in
(04:00):
North America, the common name of brown bear is usually
saved for those in coastal areas with access to marine
life and other coastal resources as part of their food source,
whereas the bears that are considered grizzly bears usually live
inland and do not have access to coastal or marine
food resources. And at this time many consider the grizzly
(04:20):
bear a subspecies of the brown bear, much like the
kodiak bear is a subspecies. So yes, grizzly bears are
a type of brown bear, but not all brown bears
are grizzly bears. Rick the name grizzly really stands out.
How did brown bears in North America come to be
referred to as grizzly bears? Well, this is actually kind
of interesting, eveny. There are two schools of thought on
(04:42):
how the name grizzly bear came about. Well, many say
the grizzly bear is named because its hair is grizzled
spelled g r i z z l e ed. Grizzled
hair is defined as sort of that dark hair that
has silvery or light colored tips or sprinkles of gray,
so hence the name grizzly bear. That's kind of how
the coat looks. While others say that it comes from
(05:03):
the term grizzlies spelled g r i s l y
this means horrible, gruesome, or fear inspiring. Personally, I'm team
grizzly with disease because I don't think they're that horrible
or gruesome. I think it's just, you know, they've got
a cool hairstyle. Where can you find brown bears? Where
then they found in nature? What's their living range? This
(05:23):
one might be a surprise for some people Ebony. Currently,
brown bears can be found in parts of Europe, Asia,
and northwest North America. There was a time when they
were abundant across the northern Hemisphere, with populations found in
the Middle East and the Atlas Mountain ranges of Northern
Africa as well. That seems like a really big range.
Is that unusual? How did brown bears come to have
(05:46):
such a large rage? Oh, They're very resourceful ebony and
have been able to adapt to a variety of ecosystems,
from coastal to mountain ranges, from very very cold climates
to even milder, almost swampy climates. This kind of adaptability
has allowed them to successfully thrive in many areas, and
scientists attribute the brown bears distribution to their ancestors at
(06:08):
this time. Fossil records indicate that the brown bear of
today evolved from a now extinct species of cave bear
that was native to Europe and Asia. With brown bears
adapting so well to new environments, they took advantage of
opportunities to move into areas where their cave bear ancestors
did not inhabit, including taking advantage of the land bridge
that once connected the northeastern corner of Asia to the
(06:31):
northwestern corner of North America. And Rick, as you mentioned,
these brown bears occupy a wider range of habitats than
any other bear. Their range overlaps with the American in
Asiatic black bear and also slightly that of the polar bear.
How has um this range? Has it changed over time?
(06:52):
Has it expanded or are fronk over time? Oh? Yeah,
their range has changed quite a bit, from being found
in almost every part of the northern hemisphere too much
smaller pockets of population. Today. In the United States, the
heaviest concentration of brown bears occurs in Alaska. Their range,
though in the lower forty eight States, is now reduced
to less than one percent of its historical scope. While
(07:14):
in Europe, the mountains of Romania are considered to have
the largest population of brown bears remaining, and in Asia,
while the largest population there is found in the eastern
and northeastern portions of Russia. Rick, what about the brown
bears population size? You've mentioned that their numbers are smaller
today than they were in the past. What's been the
(07:35):
pattern over time? Well? Although their population is significantly lower
than their historic populations. Most research shows us that their
current population is held at a stable number for a while. Now.
The biggest influence to brown bear populations is a growing
human population and encroachment into the bear's habitat. If we
can continue to coexist with the brown bear, we should
(07:57):
be able to see their population stay stable in the future. Rick,
how does the location of the habitat that the bear
is in? How does that influence the brown bears behavior
when it comes to things like food choices. Remember ebony
I said that brown bears are very resourceful and the
fact that they are omnivores, meaning that they eat meat
and plant materials, allows for them to adapt to different
(08:20):
environments and different seasons. For example, in the spring, they'll
feed on grass and young shoots of different plants. In
the summer they'll eat berries and available fruit, while in
the autumn they'll consume nuts and other seed based plant
materials like acorns. Now additionally, they'll eat reptiles, small mammals, insects, roots,
honey when it's available and depending upon location. Brown bears
(08:40):
also feed upon larger mammals such as moose and elk,
while other populations of brown bear will take advantage of
salmon migrating up rivers and streams. Speaking of brown bears
eating fish, besides images of maybe brown bears gathered together
in water catching fish, they seem like they're pretty solitary.
Are they Are they solitary or they consider more social? Well,
(09:01):
it's true. I mean brown bears will congregate when food
sources are abundant, whether it's a whole bunch of berries
on a hillside finally becoming right at the same time,
or like you mentioned, when they go fishing because of
fish are migrating, and although a dominance based hierarchy involving
usually aggression is established in those moments, they aren't really
considered social like a pride of lions or a pack
of wolves. Brown bears are considered solitary, with males and
(09:25):
females only coming together for breeding purposes, and of course
then the female brown bear raises the cubs, but once
they mature, they're on their own, So technically these brown
bears are considered solitary. You mentioned cubs. For how many
years will a mama bear raise and protect her cub well,
depending upon the subspecies of brown bear, cubs will stay
(09:46):
with their mother anywhere from two to three years, and
in that time the mother protects them from other brown
bears and teaches them everything they need to know to
head out on their own and be a brown bear.
Now it's worth noting the mother will not mate and
does not have more cubs until her current offspring are
well on their own, Rick, brown bears serve a fascinating
role in their ecosystem. Can you explain how they help
(10:08):
keep everything balanced? Well, you're right, Ebony. They do play
a very important role in whatever ecosystem they're living in.
For example, when bears eat fruit while they're scat, disperses
the seed which helps the habitat continue to grow. And
when they dig for food like roots and tubers, plant
bulbs and rodents while they stir up the soil and
kind of help areat things releasing nitrogen into the ground
(10:30):
and keeps that habitat healthy. In the spring. Brown bears
will even eat young calves of bison, elk, and moose,
even other wildlife, which helps keep those populations in check.
It is fair to say, being large omnivores, that brown
bears serve many roles in keeping their ecosystem balanced. Coming up,
we'll talk to Holly O'Connor. She's a senior Wildlife care
(10:50):
specialist with the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance that's coming
up right after this. Now it's time for the San
Diego's a Minute, an opportunity for you to learn what's
new at the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. A new
study sheds light on global conservation efforts for rhinoceros. The
(11:12):
study was conducted by Stellenbosch University Animal Tuberculosis Research Group,
South African National Parks of Veterinary Wildlife Services in San
Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. They tested samples from more than
four hundred rhinos in Kruger National Park. Results revealed the
presence of a pathogen that causes bovine tuberculosis in an
estimated of black and white rhinos studied. The new study
(11:35):
has had significant implications for the parks rhino conservation and
management strategies as it gives a better understanding of how
domestic animals may or may not impact the health of
wildlife in the area. Did you know newborn brown bear
cubs produce a loud, continuous humming sound while nursing, which
is believed to help stimulate their mother's milk production. This
(11:58):
noise is so loud it can be heard from outside
the din. Brown bears have been in the care of
the San Diego Zoo for more than a century. Now
we're going to talk to senior wildlife care specialist Holly
O'Connor about brown bears. Hi. Holly, Hi, So we're talking
(12:22):
about brown bears today, but you work with more than
the brown bear. You also work with other bears, including
the sun bear. But what makes the brown bear special
in unique and stand out from other bear species so ebony.
They are just like every bear, It is adapted to
survive in its own unique environment, and the brown bear
(12:44):
in particular is more of a terrestrial bear. It is
the second largest of the bear species. There's eight bear species,
and some of their unique adaptations to survive are extra
long claws and an extra large muscle mass around their shoulders.
Both of those features allow them to be expert diggers
(13:07):
where they can dig up rodents and tubers and roots
and also make their winter dens with those powerful fore limbs.
And you mentioned powerful grizzly bears way upwards of seven
hundred pounds, and as you mentioned, their muscular and they
have these long claws, How do you care for an
(13:29):
animal as large and powerful as a grizzly bear. So, yes,
it is true that brown bears are large and powerful animals,
and certainly we need to keep those features in mind
when we're caring for these amazing animals. But just as
much as you would take care in caring for a
(13:50):
grizzly bear, you would also take care in caring for
a mouse. You need to know your species. You need
to know its behavior, what it's capable of, and how
it could put atually cause harm. So in the case
of our bears, we use what's called protected contact. We
never go in with our bears. We have a safe
barrier between us and the animals. We can get up
(14:12):
close to them in this protected setting, but we would
never cross that barrier where we could potentially get injured.
The San Diego Zoo is home to two grizzly bear
brothers Scout in Montana. How did Scout in Montana come
to call the San Diego Zoo home? So Scout in Montana, unfortunately,
(14:33):
where the product of finding food in campsites in their
native habitat in Yellowstone Territory. Their mother bear was doing
what a good mother bear does and teaching their cubs
or her cubs where all of the food resources are
in the environment. And because people had several times left
(14:55):
food in their campsites and didn't follow the park rules,
the bears were attracted to those food items and came
into close contact with human areas. Fortunately nobody got hurt,
but the park system does have like a three strike
bear policy and if a bear continues to do this behavior,
(15:15):
they do need to relocate the animals. With the case
of Scout in Montana, their mother bear had a few
incidents and now she was teaching two more bears that
they could find food in camps So the entire family
did have to leave Yellowstone and we received Scout in
Montana as rescue cubs when they were ten months old
(15:36):
and their mama went to another facility. Wow, ten months old.
Can you talk about the type of bond that develops
after all that time and just how well you get
to know the animal as a wildlife care specialist, specifically
for Scout in Montana, do they have like detectable personalities? Absolutely? Um,
(15:58):
Just like any creature are unique to their species and
unique from each other. Scout in Montana, I've had the
pleasure of working with them since they did come to
us at ten months of age, so fifteen years we've
worked together. And I just tell you, like Scout is
a little bit more of the little brother. He seems
(16:18):
to rely on Montana a bit for protection and for reassurance,
and Montana does act a little bit like the big
brother protecting him. I'd even heard a story from one
of the people that had rescued the two cubs. They
were actually captured in a trap to be able to
be removed out of Yellowstone, and Scout, unfortunately, he escaped
(16:40):
the trap and he got injured. We believe in the
process he injured his jaw, but the staff were able
to recapture him, thankfully, And when they were in the
facility being held, Montana did kind of barricade himself around
Scout and act as a protector towards him. So At
started with them early on, and now they're adults and
(17:04):
they they have their own requests and needs, and Scout really,
really really likes food, and Montana of course loves food too.
But he's a little bit more seasonal than Scout in
that he kind of takes to the seasons. He gets
sleepier sooner than Scout does and is a little bit
(17:25):
more relaxed about things. So, speaking of that, what might
an observant whilife care specialists learn from just watching Scout
in Montana and how they interact and what cues might
they be able to pick up on. Can you tell,
for instance, if one is having a bad day? Oh? Definitely. Um.
(17:45):
They are very expressive in many many ways. And as
a wildlife care specialist, it is absolutely my job to
pay attention to the bears and pick up on the
cues that they give us on their needs and their wants,
so that they can have a healthy life, so that
we can provide for them stimulations that they can elicit
(18:07):
their own natural bear behaviors. So we tried to um
a look at their natural history and understand what do
these bears do in the wild at different times of
the year, and then we try to provide experiences that
mimic those those events. But by the same token, we
pick our cues up from the actual bears, because they're
(18:28):
going to dictate the types of things that are interested in,
the types of foods and the types of activities. So
Grizzly bears once roamed throughout the entire western United States
and south into Mexico. Unfortunately, they're no longer found in
about of their original habitat. What happened humans as they
(18:50):
were exploring the country and moving west, they were competing
for resources with the bears. And this is a big,
power full animal that can be very dangerous when it
comes in close contact with humans. So as humans created
roads and settlements and kind of pushed the bears out
of those areas, and or the bears were still there
(19:16):
and people eradicated them. They didn't want to share the
space with the bears and it would probably be dangerous
if they tried. So the bears got pushed further and
further into the wilderness, and that is why they are
more secluded into an area where there still is plenty
of room for them to roam and gain resources. It's
really about resources, So grizzly bears are federally listed as threatened.
(19:43):
What can be done to improve their ability to coexist
with humans? Bears need a lot of space and they
need to be left alone and allowed to find all
of the resources they need to survive in their environment,
especially in a place like Yellowstone where there's about six
months of the year where there's no food for them,
(20:05):
So they're going to need to have spring, summer, and
fall to wander throughout their entire habitat, access the foods
that are available at the different seasons, and when they're
in their most nutritious state and consume as much of
those food sources as they can, then they move on
to the next source until they have gained enough weight
(20:26):
so that they can go into their winter torpor commonly
called hibernation and basically live off of those fat reserves.
So when we disrupt their ability to find their resources
and build up those fat reserves, it really impacts the
bears and their abilities to survive. So we want to
have protected land for them that's uninterrupted, it's not fragmented.
(20:50):
If you build roads and you drill for oil in
bare habitat, that's going to disrupt their ability to get
their resources that they need to survive. Another thing that
people need to be aware of, of course, when you're
in bear country is following the park rules where you
lock up your food when you're hiking. You want to
make noise so that you don't surprise the bears. And
(21:11):
then this is still true today, will probably always be true. Reduce, reuse, recycle.
Anytime you can conserve natural resources, that helps bears. Because
there's less drilling for oil cutting down the trees, you're
saving wood products. Plastic is made from oil, so if
you can serve your plastic, that benefits the bears as well.
(21:33):
What would you say has been the best part about
working with brown bears? Bears in general are just amazing animals,
and the brown bears, the Grizzly Bear Scout in Montana,
they teach me things every day. I enjoy them so
much because they're very seasonal, even in our mild California climate.
(21:53):
They feel those seasons and they want different things at
different times of the year, and it's just so much
fun to pick up on those cues and provide these
things for them so that they can do their bare behaviors.
And when bears do bear behaviors, people watch that they
can feel a connection to them and hopefully have interest in,
(22:15):
you know, protecting them. We've been talking with senior wildlife
care specialist Holly O'Connor. Thanks Holly, thank you, Evity, thanks
for listening. We hope you've enjoyed learning about the brown bear,
also known as the Grizzly Bear, and be sure to
subscribe and tune into next week's episode, in which we
bring you the story of an animal that has the
(22:37):
word sloth in its name, but it's not related to
sloss and you can outrun a human. I'm Ebdemone and
I'm Rich Schwartz. Thanks for listening. If you would like
to find out more about San Diego Zoo Wildlack Alliance,
please visit sdz w a dot org Amazing Wildlife. As
(22:57):
a production of I Heart Radio, our producer isn't A
key A Swinton and our executive producer is Marcia de Peanut.
Our audio engineer and editor is Sierra Spreen. For more
shows from My Heart Radio, check out the I Heart
Radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you listen to your
favorite shows.
Hosts And Creators
Rick Schwartz
Marco Wendt
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