Brown Bear (Ursus arctos) Fact Sheet: Population & Conservation Status

Global population estimate: exceeds 200,000 individuals (McLellan et al. 2017)

• Russia - more than 100,000
• U.S. - 33,000
  • Over 500 in and near Yellowstone National Park
• Canada - 25,000
• Europe - 15,400
  • Several very small isolated populations
• Hokkaido, Japan - 2,200 or more

(Herrero 1994) (McLellan et al 2008) (Servheen 1999) (IUCN.org)

• IUCN Status
  • Least Concern (2016 assessment) (McLellan et al. 2017)
• CITES Status (UNEP 2020)
  • Appendix I: only the populations of Bhutan, China, Mexico and Mongolia
    • Also subspecies Ursus arctos isabellinus
  • Appendix II: all other populations
• Legally hunted in some areas, where abundant
  • Alaska, Russia, Japan, parts of Europe
  • Cosidered a big game animal
• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Endangered Species Act (Federal Register 1975)
  • 1975 - Threatened in lower 48 states (more information at USFWS)
  • 2007 - Yellowstone population no longer meets USFW definition of threatened. (Federal Register 2007)
  • 2009 - Yellowstone population relisted as threatened. (Federal Register 2010)
  • 2017 - Yellowstone population removed from the Endangered Species List
• Survey work to determine numbers and distribution urgently needed in Afghanistan; currently on Afghanistan's Protected Species List.
• Rare in places like Nepal and Iran
• U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 2000: (Schwartz et al 2003)
  • Grizzly Bear Recovery Progam aims to restore grizzlys with a cooperative effort to a core widerness area of 14,983 sq km (5785 sq mi) in central Idaho and western Montana.

(McLellan et al 2008) (Proctor et al 2005)

• Hunting by humans for sport, or unsustainable control measures.
• Poaching for commercial trade in gall bladders and paws, especially in Russian Far East
  • North America may be next source of bear organs for medicinal uses unless belief systems change, or legal penalties provide limits to exploitation. (Servheen 1999)
• Destruction and fragmentation of habitats leads to vulnerable small populations.
• Causes of fragmented habitats:
  • Highways
  • Hydroelectric developments
  • Plantation forestry
  • Agriculture
• Bears' attraction to areas with human foods
• Factors impacting salmon survival which in turn threatens some grizzly populations: (Mowat & Heard 2006)
  • Global climate change
  • Overfishing
  • Hydroelectric plants
  • Destruction of salmon spawning habitats (Mowat & Heard 2006)
• Lack of reliable bear population estimates for sound management practices
• Size of home range may require extensive cooperation between management units and countries (Herrero 1994)

Federal Register (1975, 2007, 2010)
McLellan et al (2008)
Proctor et al (2005)
Servheen (1999)