Kodiak Bear
The Kodiak bear (Ursus arctos middendorffi) is the largest of the brown bear species. Also known as the Alaskan grizzly bear. The Kodiak bears live on the islands of the Kodiak Archipelago in South-Western Alaska.
Kodiak bears are considered to be a unique subspecies (Ursus arctos middendorffi). Recent studies of genetic samples from bears on Kodiak have shown that they are close relatives to brown bears on the Alaska Peninsula and Kamchatka, Russia. It appears that Kodiak bears have been genetically isolated since at least the last ice age (10,000 to 12,000 years ago) and there is very little genetic diversity within the population. Although as of 2010 the current population is healthy and productive, and has shown no overt adverse signs of inbreeding, it may be more vulnerable to new diseases or parasites than other brown bear populations.
Kodiak bears range in color from from blonde to orange to dark brown. Kodiak bear cubs often have a white "natal ring" around their neck for the first couple years of life. The Kodiak's color is similar to that of their very close relative, the Grizzly bear.
As for size, all weights are estimates, because very few Kodiak bears have been weighed in the wild. Size range for females is from 500 to 700 pounds and for males 800 to 1400 pounds. Females are typically about 20% smaller and 30% lighter than males and adult sizes are attained when bears are 6 years old.
Bears weigh the least when they come out of hibernation and emerge from their dens in the spring. After that, they can increase their weight by 20-30% during late summer and fall. Bears in captivity can sometimes attain heavier weights considerably more than those of wild bears.
An adult male Kodiak bear stands up 5 ft tall at the shoulder when it is standing on all four legs. If it is standing fully upright on its hind legs, a large male could stand as tall as 10 ft. The largest bear on record was a Kodiak bear that grew in captivity and died in the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in 1955, weighing 1670lbs. They are comparable in size to polar bears. Kodiak bears and polar bears are the two largest members of the bear family, although polar bears tend to be longer and stand taller.
The standard method of determining the size of bears is by measuring their skulls. Most North American hunting organizations and management agencies use calipers to measure the length of the skull (back of sagittal crest on the back of the skull to the front tooth) and the width (maximum width between the zygomatic arches - "cheek bones"). The total skull size is the sum of these two measurements. The largest bear ever killed in North America was from Kodiak Island with a total skull size of 30.75 in. Eight of the top 10 brown bears listed in the Boone and Crockett record book are from Kodiak. The average skull size of Kodiak bears that were killed by hunters in the first five years of the 21st century was 25.1 inches for boars and 21.8 in for sows.
Although the term "Kodiak bear" is widely used to include all coastal Alaska brown bears, the unique subspecies only occurs on the islands of the Kodiak Archipelago. In 2005, the Kodiak bear population was estimated to include 3,526 bears. During the past decade the population has been slowly increasing.
Kodiak bears reach maturity at age five and the average time between litters is four years. Mating season for Kodiak bears is during May and June. They are serially monogamous (having one partner at a time), staying together from two days to two weeks. As soon as the egg is fertilized and divides a few times, it enters a state of suspended animation until autumn when it finally implants on the uterine wall and begins to grow again. Cubs are born in the den during January or February, weighing less than a pound at birth with little hair and closed eyes. They will nurse on their mother for several months, emerging from the den in May or June, weighing 15-20 pounds. Typical litter sizes are two or three cubs. Sows are sometimes seen with five or six cubs in tow, probably due to adopting cubs from other litters. Most cubs stay with their mothers for three years. Unfortunately, almost half of the cubs die before they leave. Cannibalism by adult male bears being one of the major causes of death.
There have been no scientific studies evaluating the sensory perception or intelligence of Kodiak bears, but subjective observations and comparisons to other bears indicate that Kodiak bears have eyesight that is comparable to humans, have hearing that is comparable to an average dog, and have a sense of smell that is up to four times more acute than the average dog. Their level of intelligence seems to be somewhere between that of an average dog and a primate. Due to their level of intelligence, individual bears have personalities and unique ways of dealing with situations.
Kodiak bears are generally solitary in nature; but when food is concentrated in small areas, such as along salmon spawning streams, berry patches, a dead whale, or even a large garbage dump they often are seen in large groups. To maximize their intake at these important feeding areas, it seems the bears have learned to minimize fighting and fatal interactions by developing a complex language (both verbal and body posturing) and social structure.
In most situations, Kodiak bears are shy and they usually attempt to avoid encounters with humans. The most notable exceptions to this behavior pattern occur when bears are surprised or feel threatened by people. Also if the bears are attracted by human food, garbage, or hunter-killed game in the area. Bear safety precautions involve avoiding such situations, understanding bear behavior and bear needs, and learning how to recognize the warning signs given by a stressed bear.
There haven't been many recorded fatal bear attacks against humans on the Kodiak archipelago. As of 2009, the last reported attack was in 1999 on two hunters. The National Geographic Society filmed a TV program about the attack and another, both of which occurred on Raspberry Island, part of the Kodiak archipelago and home to two full service wilderness lodges. Both hunters were returning to game they had previously killed and left alone to go kill another. One of the hunters was killed by the bear and the other, after being attacked, reportedly stabbed the bear with a knife, then was able to recover his rifle and kill the attacking bear. Before that, the last fatality supposedly in 1921.
Early human residents of the archipelago looked to the sea for their food, and early Kodiak Natives (Alutiiqs) sometimes hunted bears, eating their meat, using their hides for clothing and bedding, and teeth for adornment. Traditional stories often revolved around the similarity between bears and humans, and around the mystical nature of bears because of their proximity to the spirit world. In their indigenous language, the name 'Alutiiq' means 'fierce bear hunter'
Entrepreneurs from Russia came to the area in the late 18th century to capitalize on the plentiful fur resources. Bear hides were sold for about the same price as river otter pelts, and were considered a "minor fur".. The number of bears killed increased substantially when sea otter populations declined and after the United States acquired Alaska in 1867, bear harvests on Kodiak increased, peaking at as many as 250 bears per year. Commercial fishing activities increased in the late 1880s and canneries flourished throughout the archipelago. Bears were looked at as competitors for the salmon resource and were routinely shot when seen on streams or coasts. At the same time, hunters and scientists had recognized the Kodiak bear as the largest in the world, and they voiced concerns about overharvesting the population
Professional interest in guided Kodiak bear hunts and a concern for unregulated resource use in Alaska prompted the territorial government's newly established Alaska Game Commission to outlaw commercial bear hunting on the archipelago in 1925 and make the selling of bear hides illegal. The impacts of the new regulations seemed to restore bear populations on the Kodiak islands. By the 1930s, ranchers on northeast Kodiak reported an increase in bear problems and wanted something done about it. Bears were also seen as a threat to the expanding commercial salmon fishing industry. To address the dilemma of conserving bears while protecting cattle, salmon and people, President Franklin D. Roosevelt created the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge by Executive Order in 1941. The 1,900,000-acre refuge roughly encompasses the southwestern two-thirds of Kodiak Island, Uganik Island, the Red Peaks area on northwestern Afognak Island, and all of Ban Island.
Alaska achieved statehood in 1959 and took responsibility for managing the wildlife. The Alaska Board of Game reduced bear hunting seasons on Afognak and Raspberry islands and in the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge, but lengthened bear seasons on non-refuge lands on Kodiak. During the 1960s, state biologists worked with ranchers along the Kodiak road system to examine and reduce the predation problem. Biologists reported that cattle and bears were not compatible on the same ranges and potential solutions included poisons, fences to isolate cattle ranges, and aerial shooting of bears. Again, hunters voiced their support for Kodiak bears. In spite of public pressure, the state continued actively pursuing and dispatching problem bears until 1970.
A Citizens Advisory Committee was established in 2001 to work closely with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, with the cooperation of Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge, to develop a management plan addressing several problems that affect bears, including habitat, hunting, and viewing. The resulting Kodiak Archipelago Bear Conservation and Management Plan was crafted over several months by representatives from twelve diverse user groups, which, after hearing from a variety of experts from agencies and receiving extensive public input, developed more than 270 recommendations for managing and conserving Kodiak bears. Despite the diversity of viewpoints expressed by members of the group, all of the recommendations were by consensus.
The underlying themes of the recommendations were to continue conservation of the bear population at its current level, increase education programs to teach people how to live with bears on Kodiak, and protection of bear habitat with allowances for continued human use of the Archipelago. Although the group's role is only advisory, government management agencies expressed a commitment to implement all of the regulations that were feasible and within their legal jurisdictions.