The brown bear-basic facts
Habitat
Bears dwell in many types of habitat in the northern hemisphere, but prefer forest of varous kinds.
Behaviour patterns
Not much is known about the social life of bears. They are solitary animals, with adult males and females living apart. A female's home range covers about 500 square kilometres, and a male's about 1500 square kilometres. Males can wander long distances in a short time. Bears sleep through 5-7 months of winter in dens bedded with moss, berry shrubs, and branches of spruce and pine.
Diet
Bears have a varied diet and adjust it to the available food supply. In the spring, they eat mainly ants, elks and carcasses. Elk calves are the principal food in summer, followed by ants and grass. In the autumn, bears lay on extra fat to get through the foodless winter. They eat large quantities of berries, mainly blueberries and crowberries.
