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Meet the Mascot: Grizzly Bear

Scientific Name: Ursus arctos horribilis

Length: 6-8 feet

Height: 3 to 4 feet tall at the shoulder (standing up to 8 feet on hind legs)

Weight: 400 - 1,200 pounds

Gestation Period: 180 -250 days

Life Span: 20 to 30 years in the wild

Habitat: Forests, river valleys, and mountainous regions of North America


Interesting Facts:

  • Grizzlies are strong swimmers and can cross large rivers.
  • Grizzlies will rub against trees to leave their scent and scratch marks.
  • Before hibernation, grizzlies eat up to 20,000 calories a day.
  • Grizzly cubs remain with their mothers for 2-3 years to learn survival skills.
  • Grizzlies are super fast and can run up to 35 miles per hour.
  • Grizzlies have a great sense of smell and can smell food from a mile away.

Diet

Grizzly bears spend a significant part of their day foraging for food. They have an omnivorous diet, primarily consuming berries, nuts, roots, and grasses. However, they also hunt and scavenge, feeding on fish, small mammals, and carrion. During the salmon run, they gather near rivers, and streams to feast on fish, which helps them build up fat reserves. On average, they can eat up to 90 pounds of food per day to prepare for hibernation.

Traits and Behaviors

Grizzly bears are large mammals with thick fur that ranges in color from light brown to dark brown. They are known for the distinctive hump of muscle on their shoulders, which gives them incredible strength. Both males and females have sharp claws, which they use for digging and hunting. Grizzlies love to play! Cubs often wrestle with each other to build strength and learn important survival skills.

Donation Opportunities

About Vital Ground Foundation

The Vital Ground Foundation mission is to protect and restore North America's grizzly bear populations for future generations by conserving wildlife habitat and by supporting programs that reduce conflicts between bears and humans.

Based in Missoula, Mont., and working throughout the northern Rocky Mountains and Inland Northwest, we envision a permanently connected landscape that ensures the long-term survival of grizzlies and the many native species that share their range. By connecting public land strongholds with protected private lands, Vital Ground is the only land trust dedicated to large-landscape conservation for the benefit of grizzly bears, other wildlife and people.