Grizzly Bear Habitat & Distribution: A Comprehensive Guide

A grizzly is a large North American brown bear. The animal lives in different types of habitats throughout the continent, and may eat either plants, or animals like fish or elk.

Forests

• In dense forest ranges throughout Canada, thousands of Grizzlies live relatively solitary lives. Nearly 25,000 live throughout the provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, the Yukon and the Northwest territories, but numbers are decreasing due to hunters and habitat destruction. Whether flat or mountainous, many grizzlies live in forested habitats where plenty of food is available to them.

Meadows

• Grizzlies used to be more numerous in the Great Plains, but humans have pushed them out of this habitat due to construction of human environments, as well as hunting. Smaller numbers of grizzlies live in meadows, found sparingly in Wyoming, Idaho, Washington, Montana and Colorado.

Tundra

• Polar bears are not the only bear living in cold environments, thousands of grizzly bears populate the icy tundras of Canada and Alaska. Grizzlies do not go into full hibernation, but sleep in dens where they may guard their cubs. The animals then live off of fat reserves until spring.