Species fact sheet

Ursus arctos

Biology:

Size:   

Reproduction:   

Diet:   

Social organisation:   

Home ranges:    

 Males 140 – 320 kg / Females 100 – 200 kg

 Mating: May - July

 Birth: January - February

 Litter size: 1-4, normally 2-3

 Omnivorous - berries, nuts, ants, green vegetation, carcasses and

 young of wild ungulates, livestock, honey

 Solitary. Recent evidence indicates complex structure among related

 females.

 Vary from 120 to 1600 km² for males and 60 to 300 km² for females.

<80 -  

<20 -  

<20 -  

<80 -  

<20 -  

2500 -  

200 -  

500 -  

5000 -  

1500 -  

2000 -  

 Cantabrian Mountains (Spain) 

 Pyrenees (France - Spain) 

 Alps (Italy) 

 Apennines (Italy)

 Austria 

 Dinaric-Pindos (Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia, FYROM, Albania

 Greece).

 Stara Planina (Bulgaria)

 Rila Rhodope (Bulgaria, Greece)

Carpathians

Northeastern Europe (Belarus, Estonia, Finland)

Scandinavia (Norway, Sweden)

(1) Some populations are very small and isolated. It is unsure if these are viable in the long term from the points of view of both numbers and genetics. Population supplementation may be necesary - for example like in the French Pyrenees.

(2) In many parts of the large populations bears are harvested by hunters. In these areas it is important that quotas are kept within the limits of sustainability.

(3) Depredation on livestock is common throughout Europe. Effective mitigation measures need to be encouraged and applied wherever bears occur.

(4) In many places roads are being built through bear habitat, which can fragment populations and increase mortality. It is important that new infrastructure development takes wide ranging species into account and incorporate mitigation structures (tunnels, green bridges) into their plans.