The Territorial Grizzly

[brotherbear]

http://www.sdl.lib.mi.us/history/curwood.html  
 
James Oliver Curwood was an avid hunter long before he became a conservationist. He wrote fiction novels which were based on the real natural world. His book, 'The Grizzly King' ( 1916 ) was made into a popular movie, 'The Bear' in 1988. Of course, the French director, Jean-Jacques took a few liberties ( Disney style ). The book is much more exciting and informative than the movie. Also note that Thor was a real-life grizzly.
One of the things that got me to thinking came from a conversation between the two fictional hunters, Langdon ( the older, wiser, more experienced ) and the younger hunter, Bruce. I will not copy word for word from the book; much too lengthly. But here is the gist of it: The old hunter was saying that most books written about grizzlies either make a hunter laugh or make him angry. For example, the idea of a grizzly making his scratch marks on a tree and, supposedly the next boar grizzly that comes along tests his reach against the dominant boar who had made his mark. Utter nonsense! 
Most grizzly experts today will tell you that a grizzly is not territorial. Curwood had another idea. The dominant boar grizzly is indeed territorial; but the rules of a grizzly are not the same as the rules of a big cat ( big cats not mentioned in the book ). The apex boar grizzly will allow other grizzlies and other predators to live within his domain. After all, while some grizzlies are more predatory than others, no grizzly depends solely on meat. The top grizzly will ignore the other males so long as they stay out of his way. To challenge him over a berry bush, a choice fishing spot, or a female will not go unpunished. He will patrol his kingdom often, making sure that all who live there knows and understands that he is their lord and master.  Reply

[brotherbear]

The Grizzly, Our Greatest Wild Animal by Enos Abijah Mills - published in 1919.

The territory dominated by Old Timberline had an area of about eighty square miles. The western boundary-line followed the rim of the Continental Divide for nearly fifteen miles. Meeker Ridge and Cony Creek were other boundary-lines, while at the north stood Chief's Head Mountain and Long's Peak. Toward the south the territory narrowed and was not more than two miles across; in the center it must have been nearly ten miles wide. An extensive area lay above the timber-line. There were forests primeval, a number of canons and streams, numerous small lakes and beaver ponds. In this varied and extensive region Old Timberline had all the necessities of life and many of the luxuries of beardom. Reply

[brotherbear]

The Grizzly, Our Greatest Wild Animal by Enos Abijah Mills 
A grizzly is strongly attached to his home territory and spends most of his time in it. Occasionally, and in exceptional cases regularly, he wanders far away. A scarcity of food may cause him to leave home temporarily; or excessive food elsewhere may attract him. 
The abundance of food at any place in a bear's territory gives other grizzlies public rights. A berry-patch or a stream which has a supply equal to the needs of many bears, a beaver pond, or a lake, may become a public feeding-place. A flood, a storm, a snow-slide, or other agency may take the lives of a number of animals - cause a congestion of food in any territory. 
That there sometimes is fighting in these public places, and that one bear sometimes tries to hog a larger food-supply than he can use does not change the custom of the species. Incidentally, this violation of general or public rights but reminds us how human-like are bears in their habits, good and bad. Reply

[brotherbear]

The Grizzly, Our Greatest Wild Animal by Enos Abijah Mills 
There are a number of regions in Alaska where a bear lives in his own chosen locality but regularly goes to a public feeding-ground. Much of the food is along the seashore and on the lower courses of streams. There is also a food-belt above the timber-line, where mice abound and where there is grass upon which bears feed. The seasonal nature of part of the food may thus encourage or compel bears of one locality to travel a long distance to secure the only food obtainable.
If there be straggling grizzlies who wander about like gypsies, they are the rare exception: the nearest to them were the few "buffalo grizzlies," those that in old days followed the migrating buffalo herds. Reply