The first time I saw a grizzly bear in the wild was awe inspiring to say the least. I almost forgot I had a camera in my hand! Then, when I remembered, I picked it up and just kept “shooting.” The first half day on the river I think I took 3000 photographs!! Yep. You heard right. I was just so excited to see these amazing giants before me. I witnessed as the bears walked along the shore, picked berries, tended to their cubs, scratched their backs on trees and rocks, dozed and ate.
All of it was very exciting, especially seeing it for the first time, BUT there was nothing more exhilarating than watching the mighty grizzly bear fish for salmon!! For such a huge, cumbersome beast, they were very observant and quick on the drawn. Some would submerge their face for but a minute and suddenly resurface with a flailing salmon clenched between their jaws. Others, although much less common
, would dive completely under water, head first, and come to the surface, fighting salmon in tow! In either case, the grizzly then would relax, settle back and begin his/her meal.
The most interesting part for me was the manner in which they consumed their catch. What I have come to learn is that the order/method is dependent on a number of factors. During ideal conditions, when the salmon run is plentiful, grizzlies are much more discerning. They are approaching hibernation season and do not want to waste their time and energy consuming useless calories. They want the biggest bang for their buck, eating only those parts with the highest calories/fat content. My first season observing grizzlies, happe
ned to be one where the salmon were plentiful. I witnessed the same ritual being undertaken by each bear. They would eat the brain first. Yes! Just chomp off the back of the head. Then they would slowly and meticulously peel away and eat the skin and munch on any eggs available before tossing the rest of the carcass to the awaiting crows, gulls and raven!
Circumstances were much different the following year. With the salmon run being critically low, grizzlies were not only eating the entire salmon, but als
o eating those that were already half dead and/or diseased. Sadly, however, in these “bad” years, and despite their best efforts,
some were still not able to fatten up enough to sustain them through the winter nor nourish any cubs they carry or birth while in their dens. Should the sow and any cubs be fortunate enough to survive, they w
ould emerge from the den to begin the process once again. The pressure is on however if there are little mouths to feed.
Grizzly cubs stay with mom for an average of 2 to 3 years. Like human children, they are nursed at first, then introduced to and taught to find and/or catch their food. It is a slow and deliberate process and eventually involves a little tough love, but ultimately, if they survive, cubs will learn to be independent foragers, hunters and fishermen before they leave mom to start their own lives/families!
