The diet of grizzly bears in the Flathead River drainage of southeastern British Columbia
Based on the analysis of 1100 feces or scats, the seasonal diet of grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) in the Flathead drainage between 1979 and 1991 was estimated. In the early spring, major foods included ungulates and hedysarum roots (Hedysarum sulphurescens). Later in the spring and early summer, green...
Published in: | Canadian Journal of Zoology |
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Language: | English |
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Canadian Science Publishing
1995
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/z95-082 http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/z95-082 |
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crcansciencepubl:10.1139/z95-082 2024-09-30T14:45:37+00:00 The diet of grizzly bears in the Flathead River drainage of southeastern British Columbia McLellan, Bruce N. Hovey, Fred W. 1995 http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/z95-082 http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/z95-082 en eng Canadian Science Publishing http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/page/about/CorporateTextAndDataMining Canadian Journal of Zoology volume 73, issue 4, page 704-712 ISSN 0008-4301 1480-3283 journal-article 1995 crcansciencepubl https://doi.org/10.1139/z95-082 2024-09-05T04:11:16Z Based on the analysis of 1100 feces or scats, the seasonal diet of grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) in the Flathead drainage between 1979 and 1991 was estimated. In the early spring, major foods included ungulates and hedysarum roots (Hedysarum sulphurescens). Later in the spring and early summer, green vegetation that mainly included horsetails (Equisetum arvense), graminoids, and cow parsnip (Heracleum lanatum) dominated the diet. Later in the summer, berries, particularly huckleberries (Vaccinium spp.) and soopolallie (Shepherdia canadensis), were most common. In the autumn, berries, ungulates, and hedysarum roots were major foods. Seasonal changes in nutrients were measured for major foods. The volume of a food consumed within a season was inversely related to food quality, suggesting that food availability and handling time may have been more important factors influencing diet selection. The proportions of food items in the scats, and species of fruit in particular, varied among years. The Flathead and contiguous Waterton Lakes National Park are so far the only study areas in North America that contain all major bear foods found across the interior of the continent, and in particular, both major berry species, huckleberries and soopolallie. This observation supports the hypothesis that a favourable food base in the Flathead is partially responsible for the high density of bears found there. It is important for managers to realize the possible uniqueness of the Flathead area and not extrapolate information without due caution. Article in Journal/Newspaper Ursus arctos Canadian Science Publishing Canadian Journal of Zoology 73 4 704 712 |
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Open Polar |
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Canadian Science Publishing |
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crcansciencepubl |
language |
English |
description |
Based on the analysis of 1100 feces or scats, the seasonal diet of grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) in the Flathead drainage between 1979 and 1991 was estimated. In the early spring, major foods included ungulates and hedysarum roots (Hedysarum sulphurescens). Later in the spring and early summer, green vegetation that mainly included horsetails (Equisetum arvense), graminoids, and cow parsnip (Heracleum lanatum) dominated the diet. Later in the summer, berries, particularly huckleberries (Vaccinium spp.) and soopolallie (Shepherdia canadensis), were most common. In the autumn, berries, ungulates, and hedysarum roots were major foods. Seasonal changes in nutrients were measured for major foods. The volume of a food consumed within a season was inversely related to food quality, suggesting that food availability and handling time may have been more important factors influencing diet selection. The proportions of food items in the scats, and species of fruit in particular, varied among years. The Flathead and contiguous Waterton Lakes National Park are so far the only study areas in North America that contain all major bear foods found across the interior of the continent, and in particular, both major berry species, huckleberries and soopolallie. This observation supports the hypothesis that a favourable food base in the Flathead is partially responsible for the high density of bears found there. It is important for managers to realize the possible uniqueness of the Flathead area and not extrapolate information without due caution. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
McLellan, Bruce N. Hovey, Fred W. |
spellingShingle |
McLellan, Bruce N. Hovey, Fred W. The diet of grizzly bears in the Flathead River drainage of southeastern British Columbia |
author_facet |
McLellan, Bruce N. Hovey, Fred W. |
author_sort |
McLellan, Bruce N. |
title |
The diet of grizzly bears in the Flathead River drainage of southeastern British Columbia |
title_short |
The diet of grizzly bears in the Flathead River drainage of southeastern British Columbia |
title_full |
The diet of grizzly bears in the Flathead River drainage of southeastern British Columbia |
title_fullStr |
The diet of grizzly bears in the Flathead River drainage of southeastern British Columbia |
title_full_unstemmed |
The diet of grizzly bears in the Flathead River drainage of southeastern British Columbia |
title_sort |
diet of grizzly bears in the flathead river drainage of southeastern british columbia |
publisher |
Canadian Science Publishing |
publishDate |
1995 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/z95-082 http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/z95-082 |
genre |
Ursus arctos |
genre_facet |
Ursus arctos |
op_source |
Canadian Journal of Zoology volume 73, issue 4, page 704-712 ISSN 0008-4301 1480-3283 |
op_rights |
http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/page/about/CorporateTextAndDataMining |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1139/z95-082 |
container_title |
Canadian Journal of Zoology |
container_volume |
73 |
container_issue |
4 |
container_start_page |
704 |
op_container_end_page |
712 |
_version_ |
1811646163461341184 |