Grizzly Bear

The Grizzly Bear (Ursus arctos horribilis) is a subspecies of the brown bear and lives in western North America.  Historically its habitat reached from Alaska to Mexico and east to the Hudson Bay but now only inhabits Alaska, Western Canada and the northwestern United States.  There is possibly a small group in the San Juan mountains of southern Colorado.

Grizzlies are important for seed dispersal, for increasing that availability of nitorgen in the soil and as keystone predators.  They play major roles in their ecosystems.

Grizzlies are listed as threatened in the lower 48 states and endangered in parts of Canada.  Yellowstone National Park grizzlies were given ESA protection in September, 2009.

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