Investigations of brown bear (Ursus arctos middendorffi) denning ecology in 2 areas of Kodiak Island, Alaska, revealed that subpopulations of bears living within 70 km of each other had developed noticeably different denning behaviors. One hundred and fifteen radio-collared brown bears were located in 321 dens. The relative order in which bears in various reproductive categories entered their dens was similar in both study areas; females entered dens earlier than most males, and pregnant females generally entered dens earliest. Female bears in Southwest Kodiak generally entered their dens 2 to 3 weeks later than their counterparts in the Terror Lake area. We hypothesize that this variation was related to the relative food availability in the 2 areas during late autumn. Emergence chronology was similar in both areas. Males were generally the 1st group to emerge from their dens, and females with new cubs were usually last. Bears at Terror Lake preferred steep slopes in alpine habitat for den sites. In Southwest Kodiak, midslope habitat and moderate slopes were preferred denning habitat. Two areas with high concentrations of dens were identified in the Terror Lake area. A high degree of fidelity to specific den sites was exhibited by individual brown bears on Kodiak. Two notable anomalies in denning behavior were observed in this study; use of multiple dens by 27 bears and failure to enter dens by 8 bears. Management implications of the differences in the denning ecology of these subpopulations are discussed.
- Volume 8
- Issue
- Pages 257-267
- Publication Date 1 January 1990
- DOI 10.2307/3872927
- File Size 477.51 KB
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