The Grizzly, Our Greatest Wild Animal — John Stuart Mill — John Shaqi
The Grizzly, Our Greatest Wild Animal
John Stuart Mill · en
He has extraordinary strength. I have known him to drag the carcass of a
cow or a steer of twice his own weight. In several instances this was
dragged up the mountain-side over fallen logs, yet it was apparently
moved without extraordinary effort.
The grizzly is exceptionally expert and agile with his paws. With either
fore paw he can strike like a sledge-hammer or lift a heavy weight. He
boxes or strikes with lightning-like rapidity. Most grizzlies are
right-handed; that is, the right fore paw is most used. If a small
object is to be touched or moved, he will daintily use but one claw. The
black bear would use the entire paw.
The fore-foot prints made by the grizzly are much shorter than the
tracks made by his hind feet. His hind foot leaves a track similar to
the bare-footed track of a man, while the track of the fore foot has the
appearance of the grizzly's having walked upon the front of his
foot,--the ball and toes,--with the heel upraised. The fore claws are
from two to five inches long, the hind claws much shorter.
The fore ankles of the grizzly are smaller than the black bear's, the
hind feet relatively larger; the claws are much longer and less curved.
The grizzly's claws do not curve as sharply downward as a black's, but
the claw-points extend well beyond the ends of the toes. The black's
curved claws are much used in climbing; the grizzly's claws are used
mostly for digging.
The largest grizzly-track that I have measured was slightly more than
thirteen inches long, and seven and one half inches wide at the widest
point. These measurements did not include the claw-marks. In places
where this bear had slipped on snowy or muddy ground the track with
claw-marks was of most formidable appearance. Many of the big Alaskan
grizzlies have large feet, sometimes making a track eighteen inches in
length. However, in the Rocky Mountains I have seen a large track that
had been made by a comparatively small bear. More than once I have seen
bears weighing less than four hundred pounds whose feet were larger than
those of other bears who weighed upwards of six hundred pounds. A large
grizzly bear track does not necessarily indicate that it is the track of
a large bear.
There is marked difference in the ordinary ways of the black and the
grizzly. The grizzly is energetic, thorough, works hard, and takes life
rather seriously; while the black bear is lazy, careless, does no more
work each day than is necessary, and is more playful. The grizzly's
hibernating-den is usually a substantial, complete affair, while that of
the black bear is more or less of a makeshift. The black bear likes to
play with other bears, while the grizzly enjoys playing alone. The black
climbs a tree easily and often sleeps in a tree-top; the grizzly bear
rarely climbs after he passes cubhood.