Denning Ecology of Barren-Ground Grizzly Bears in the Central Arctic

• Main Authors: McLoughlin, Philip D., Cluff, H. Dean, Messier, François
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford University Press 2002
• Subjects: Feature Articles; Arctic; Northwest Territories; Yellowknife; Canada; Central Arctic; Ursus arctos
• Online Access: http://jmammal.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/83/1/188; https://doi.org/10.1644/1545-1542(2002)083<0188:DEOBGG>2.0.CO;2

Between May 1995 and June 1999, we studied denning ecology of 81 barren-ground grizzly bears ( Ursus arctos ) equipped with satellite radio-collars within a study area of 235,000 km2, centered 400 km northeast of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada. All dens were located on well-drained slopes ( X ¯ = 25.3°, SE = 1.20, n = 55). Choice of den aspect was nonrandom (χ2 = 12.4, d.f. = 3, P < 0.01, n = 56); the majority of dens faced south (25), followed by west (13), east (10), and north (8). Most dens were constructed under cover of tall (>0.5 m) shrubs ( Betula glandulosa and Salix ), the root structures of which supported ceilings of dens. Selection of denning habitat by bears was significantly different from random ( G = 127.67, d.f. = 6, P < 0.0001). Bonferroni confidence intervals indicated that esker habitat was selected more than expected by chance ( P < 0.10). Den entrance occurred primarily in last 2 weeks of October. The majority of bears emerged from dens in the 1st week of May.