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The Brown Bear (Ursus
arctos) is a species of bear that can reach weights of 130–700
kg (300–1500 pounds). The Grizzly Bear, the Kodiak Bear
and the Mexican Brown Bear are North American subspecies of the
Brown Bear. It is sometimes referred to poetically as the bruin.
Brown Bears have coats in shades of blond, brown, black, or a
combination of those colours; the long outer guard hairs are often
tipped with white or silver, giving a "grizzled" appearance.
Brown Bears have a large hump of muscle over their shoulders which
gives strength to the forelimbs for digging. Their heads are large
and round with a concave facial profile. In spite of their size,
they can run at speeds of up to 64 km/h (40 mph).
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Brown Bears
are now extinct in some areas and have had their numbers greatly
reduced in others. They prefer semi-open country, usually in mountainous
areas. The Brown Bear ranges from Alaska east through the Yukon
and Northwest Territories, south through British Columbia and
through the western half of Alberta. Isolated populations exist
in northwestern Washington, northern Idaho, western Montana, and
northwestern Wyoming. The subspecies U. arctos horribilis (the
Grizzly Bear) is the common Brown Bear of continental North America;
the subspecies U. arctos middendorffi (Kodiak Bear) includes bears
on the Alaskan islands of Kodiak, Afognak, and Shuyak. The range
of the subspecies U. arctos nelsoni is in northern Mexico. There
are estimated to be about 200,000 Brown Bears in the world.
Images 1 Though 6 Are Courtesy of The US Fish and Wildlife Service
Images 7 Though 18 Are From The National Parks Service
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