Glacier National Park Bears

Glacier National Park from Apgar Lookout

Bears

What Kind of Bear is That?

Hiking in Bear Country

If You Encounter a Bear

Camping and Bears

Bear Spray

Click the play button to see a 7:17 minute bear safety video about hiking in bear country. You will need the free QuickTime plug-in from Apple to view the video.

What Kind of Bear is That?

	Grizzly	Black
Range	Widely distributed in mountain and forest areas throughout western Canada and Alaska. Currently listed as a threatened species in the lower 48, United States.	Widely distributed in mountain and forest areas throughout the U.S. and Canada.
Life Expectancy	Up to 30 years.	Up to 30 years.
Height	Six feet or more when standing on hind legs; three to four feet when standing on all fours.	Two and a half to three feet when standing on all fours.
Weight	Up to 1,400 pounds, usually 300-600 pounds.	Adult males average 220 pounds. Adult females average 140 pounds.
Color	Blond to nearly black. Sometimes silvertipped, giving a "grizzled" look.	Black, brown, cinnamon, or blond. Color never reliably distinguishes a black bear from a grizzly. Muzzle sometimes a lighter color.
Other Features	Dished face. Hump of heavy muscle over the shoulders. Claws often four inches long. Eyesight is as good as ours. Excellent sense of smell. Fast runner, able to cover 180 feet in just three seconds! Enters den in November to hibernate until spring.	Generally appears less massive than the grizzly bear. Profile more "Roman-nosed" and claws much shorter (about one and a half inches long) than the grizzly's. Also a fast runner with a keen nose and eyesight as good as ours. Hibernates throughout winter, generally from about October or November to some time in April or May.
Food	Omnivorous, with only 10-20% of its diet coming from meat, mainly carrion and rodents. Also eats huckleberries, cow parsnip, glacier lily bulbs, wet-meadow plants, and grasses, foraging primarily around dawn and dusk.	Omnivorous, eating almost any available food item. Berries, new growth, bulbs, insects, carrion, and tree cambium are all favorite foods for this dawn, dusk, and night feeder.
Reproduction	Mates in early summer. One to four cubs, each weighing about one pound, are born mid-winter.	Mates in late spring to early summer. Gestation is 220 days with average litter size of two cubs, born in January to early February.

Hiking in Bear Country

Return to Menu

Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park provides a wonderful opportunity to view animals in their natural setting. Along with this opportunity comes a special obligation for the visitor. With just a little planning and forethought, hikers can also help ensure the survival of a protected threatened species.

Don’t Surprise Bears!
Bears will usually move out of the way if they hear people approaching, so make noise. Most bells are not loud enough. Calling out or clapping hands loudly at regular intervals are better ways to make your presence known. Hiking quietly endangers you, the bear, and other hikers.

When bears charge hikers, the trail may be temporarily closed for public safety. While the trail remains closed, other visitors miss the opportunity to enjoy it. A bear constantly surprised by people may become habituated to close human contact and less likely to avoid people. This sets up a dangerous situation for both visitors and bears.

Don’t Make Assumptions!
You can’t predict when and where bears might be encountered along a trail. People often assume they don’t have to make noise while hiking on a well-used trail. Some of the most frequently used trails in the park are surrounded by excellent bear habitat. People have been charged and injured by bears fleeing from silent hikers who unwittingly surprised bears along the trail. Even if other hikers haven't recently seen bears along a trail section recently, don’t assume there are no bears present.

Don’t assume a bear’s hearing is any better than your own. Some trail conditions make it hard for bears to see, hear, or smell approaching hikers. Be particularly careful by streams, against the wind, or in dense vegetation. A blind corner or a rise in the trail also requires special attention.

Keep children close by. If possible, hike in groups and avoid hiking early in the morning, late in the day, or after dark. Do not hike alone.

Inform Yourself About Bears
Park staff can help you identify signs of bear activity such as tracks, torn-up logs, diggings, trampled vegetation, droppings, and overturned rocks. Bears spend a lot of time eating, so avoid hiking in obvious feeding areas like berry patches, cow parsnip thickets, or fields of glacier lilies.

Don't Approach Bears!
Never intentionally get close to a bear! Individual bears have their own personal space requirements which vary depending on their mood. Each will react differently and their behavior can’t be predicted. All bears are dangerous and should be respected equally.

gbear.gif (4906 bytes) bbear.gif (3761 bytes)
Artwork by Cynthia Armstrong

Top of Page

Website Visitor Center