10 Quick Facts on Brown Bears & Photography Workshop Sneak Peak

Brown Bear Facts (and a sneaky peak into our Bear Photography Workshop)

Alaska’s Lake Clark National Park is bear photography heaven. Ninety-five percent of the brown bear population in the United States live in Alaska, and a large portion of them are found in Lake Clark. The large amount of bears, the fact that the animals are very relaxed around humans, and the park’s diverse and stunning vistas make this the perfect setting for our Brown Bear Photography Workshop in Alaska. Come explore this remote wilderness area with us, sharpen your photography skills through tutoring by Barrett Hedges, and return home with a portfolio of amazing bear photography.

But let’s first have a look at some fun fact about these impressive animals.

1. Contrary to what their name suggests, brown bears aren’t just brown; they range in colour from dark to reddish brown to cream toned.
2. There are many subspecies of brown bears that vary in different geographical areas. The well-known grizzly bear, for example, is a subspecies.
3. Brown bears dig cozy caves with their claws, and during hibernation their heart beat slows down 10 times and their body temperature drops. Over the winter, a grizzly bear can lose until 150 pounds.
4. Brown bears will eat just about anything. For instance, brown bears gorge on moths, and a male can eat 40,000 of them a day.
5. Male brown bears can tower 10 feet tall and weigh over 1,200 pounds, depending on their diet.
6. The salmon diet help coastal bears grow larger than their inland cousins.
7. Brown bears roam in enormous territories of up to a thousand square miles.
8. California’s state animal is the grizzly bear, even though it went extinct there in the 1920s. The animal on the current flag of California is claimed to have been modelled on the last Californian grizzly bear in captivity called Monarch.
9. Play-fighting helps establish hierarchy among young brown bears. These animals have a system of social interactions communicated through body posturing, scent, and vocalisation.
10. Brown bears can climb trees to eat or escape predators, but only when they are cubs. As they become adults they are too heavy for climbing.

Find out more about our upcoming Bear Photography Workshops in Alaska! 

Images by Barrett Hedges.