BEARS. 17 



10 feet, while a third was still larger. Unfortunately the length from the nose to 

 the root of the tail is not given, but it is probable that in large specimens this must 

 be close on 9 feet. 



We have already seen that the grizzly is found from Alaska 

 Distribution. . J 



to Mexico ; and it may be added that from east to west it reaches 



from the Coast Range across the Sierra Nevada to the Big-Horn Range in 

 Wyoming, and some distance on to the plains at its foot. Its distribution is, how- 

 ever, becoming gradually more and more restricted. In 1868 bears were to be 

 found on the plains for several hundred miles eastward of the Big-Horn, but they 

 are now rare even in that range itself. Similarly, they have greatly diminished 

 in numbers in Southern California and the parallel valleys of the Coast hills 

 further to the northward. 



Habits ^^ at ^ e g r i zz ly bear will eat flesh whenever it has the chance 



is admitted by all, but there is some discrepancy of opinion as to 

 whether it ever kills large mammals for the sake of their flesh. Thus while Sir 

 Samuel Baker denies that they ever do so, Dr. Rainsford relates a case where his 

 hunter saw a grizzly attack one of three bisons. Wherever wapiti are abundant 

 there will grizzly bears be found. Failing meat, they, according to Dr. Rainsford, 

 thrive on nuts, acorns, etc. ; " and," he says, " the fattest grizzlies I ever killed were 

 those that had been feeding for weeks on the pine-nuts that the mountain squirrels 

 stow away in such great plenty in the little colonies on the upper hillsides. 

 Where the nut-pine is plentiful, you may also expect to find bears." The grizzly 

 is a bad climber, and seldom resorts to trees at all. Its strength is, however, 

 prodigious. One has been seen to break the neck of a tall bison with a single 

 blow of its paw ; another has bodily carried off, over very rough ground, a male 

 wapiti, weighing nearly 1000 Ibs. 



Sir Samuel Baker states that a frequent practice in bear-shooting is to kill 

 several deer, and leave them untouched on the ground as baits. " At daybreak on 

 the following morning the hunter visits his baits, and he will probably find that 

 the bears have been extremely busy during the night in scratching a hole some- 

 what like a shallow grave or trench, in which they have rolled the carcase ; they 

 have then covered it with earth and grass, and in many cases the bears may be dis- 

 covered either in the act of working, or, having completed their labour, they may 

 be found lying down asleep, half gorged with flesh." 



In the northern part of its range the grizzly bear hibernates, but it is probable 

 that in the south it remains active throughout the winter. When it first comes 

 out in the spring, it has a habit of standing upright against a pine or other 

 tree and scoring its bark with its claws. Very incorrect conclusions have been 

 drawn from these marks as to the size of the bears by which they were made, 

 it having been forgotten that the animals were generally standing on from three 

 to five feet of snow when they thus scored the trees. 



The grizzly has been accredited with extreme ferocity towards man; but, 

 granting that its great strength and extreme tenacity of life make it a most 

 formidable foe when brought to close quarters, Dr. Rainsford is inclined to think 

 that there has been considerable exaggeration on this point, and many of the stories 

 of these animals charging is due to their rolling downhill upon the hunter who 



VOL. II. 2 



