The brown bear's habitat

The brown bear is widely distributed across the Palaearctic and survives in Europe in Scandinavia, Poland, Russia, the Balkans, the Alps and the Pyrenees. In Italy it is present in three distinct nuclei: the largest population is found in central Italy, centred on the Parco Nazionale d'Abruzzo, from which it has spread across much of Abruzzo and marginally into Molise, Lazio and Marche. In eastern Trentino, what until a few years ago was the last population of bears in the Alps survives with very few individuals. In the Alpine portion of Friuli and Veneto, the bear has recently reappeared through natural recolonisation from the neighbouring Slovenian population. In the future, a gradual expansion of range can be envisaged for the eastern Alpine population, which could also reach the central Alps, while the situation of the bear in central Italy appears more problematic.

The brown bear is preferentially associated with forest environments, although it adapts to a great variety of ecological conditions. In Italy it is confined to mountain environments characterised by dense forest cover and rugged morphology; however, this restriction of frequented habitats stems from the need to avoid areas marked by excessive human disturbance, rather than from a primary selection of mountain environments. The connection with woodlands is greatest in spring and autumn, while in summer areas characterised by shrubs and herbaceous vegetation at higher altitudes are frequented more. These differences stem from the trophic availability offered by the different environments and from the particular ecological requirements of the species throughout the seasons. During winter, steep rocky slopes are preferred, possibly far from sources of human disturbance, where it is possible to find caves or crevices in which to dig a den for hibernation.

Brown bear reproduction

The brown bear is active predominantly, though not exclusively, at night. It is territorial and solitary, with social interactions limited to the mating season. During the winter months it hibernates for a variable period depending on the severity of the climate.

Brown bear status and conservation

Given its elusive behaviour, it is extremely difficult to census brown bear populations with precision, despite the animal's considerable size. In Europe it is certainly a globally threatened species, and the Italian situation appears even more critical since the populations are among the smallest and most isolated. In central Italy, fewer than 100 individuals survive, in genetic isolation for over a century.

Recent data suggest that the population has a low reproduction rate and is declining in numbers, even though in recent years it has slightly expanded its range. In eastern Trentino, three individuals survive in the Parco Naturale Adamello Brenta that have not reproduced since 1989. This population is therefore essentially extinct, although a conservation project for this nucleus is under way that involves the release of individuals from Slovenia. In the eastern Alps, a natural expansion of the Slovenian population towards Italy has been under way since the 1970s; at present, the presence of isolated individuals that have reached the Friulian and Venetian Alps has been confirmed, though the steady increase in sightings suggests a positive development for this nucleus.

Although the brown bear has been protected in Italy since 1939, poaching still represents a serious threat to the species. Other causes of mortality are due to accidents involving cars or trains. The persecution that humans inflict on the bear is mainly linked to the damage it causes to certain activities such as livestock farming and beekeeping, and has led to the disappearance of the species from much of Europe and Italy. Conservation problems are also linked, however, to the progressive reduction and fragmentation of forest habitats. The brown bear is in fact very sensitive to human disturbance, and the excessive urbanisation of our country has drastically reduced the environments still available to the species.

The grizzly is a brown bear!

It has a coat that shades from dark brown to light brown; the greyish tips of its fur give it a grizzled appearance — grizzled in American English — hence the name. The largest of the brown bears is the Kodiak, three metres in length and weighing nearly a tonne. It lives along the coasts of Alaska and British Columbia, in Canada, and it is on Kodiak Island itself that the largest specimens are found. Its best-known image shows it, in summer, along the McNeil rapids, intent on catching salmon as they swim upstream.