Grizzly bears – often referred to as grizzles- are beautiful big bears found in North America and Canada. Their large size and stocky bodies make them appear bumbling and slow, but grizzles are surprisingly fast. Exactly how fast can a grizzly bear run? Let’s find out!
Grizzly Bear Facts
Native to North America and Canada, grizzly bears used to live right across the US, Europe, Scandinavia, Asia and Russia. While centuries of game hunting has reduced their populations drastically, they are stable across the northern US states of Washington, Idaho, Wyoming and Alaska. They are also fairly common in Western Canada, although they are hunted as big game there.
Grizzlies are often confused as a species on their own, but they are actually a subspecies of brown bear. It is also common for grizzlies to be misidentified as black bears, since the two have variations in coat colour.
Both black bears and grizzlies can have coats ranging from tan right through to black. The easiest way to tell the difference between the black bear and the grizzly bear is in the ears. Black bears have upward pointing ears and grizzlies have small, rounded ears.
Male grizzly bears can be as tall as 8ft (2.4m) standing on their hind legs and can weigh as much as 1700 pounds (771kg). That’s more than a grand piano! Female grizzly bears are approximately half the size of males, weighing around 800 pounds (363kg) and growing to 5 or 6 feet tall (1.5m – 1.8m).
They have large flat paws which give them good traction and also helps them in snowy environments to prevent them from sinking into deep snowdrifts. Since grizzly bears commonly live in Arctic regions, this physical adaptation is an advantage both for survival and hunting.
Their height, powerful muscular forelegs and long claws help the grizzly bear run fairly fast, but they cannot sustain this for long distances. An adult grizzly bear in peak physical condition can run as fast as 35mph (56km/h).
Can You Outrun a Grizzly Bear?
While a grizzly bear can run at 35mph in ideal conditions, they cannot do this year-round and also, they cannot maintain this speed for long.
A bear just out of hibernation will be weak and slow, as they have not eaten for several months. It would be possible in this case to outrun a grizzly bear. An adult grizzly bear will average a running speed of 20-25mph (32-40km/h), which it can maintain for as long as 2 miles (3.2km).
The average human can run at 15mph for a short distance or around 10 mph over longer distances. So, even if you are at peak physical fitness, you could not outrun or run remotely as fast as a grizzly bear.
It is for this reason that wildlife experts say you should never run from a bear. The best option is to back away slowly. This shows you are not a threat and can help avoid the bear from charging. This is especially true of females with cubs, as she will be nervous and protective of her young.
Also Read: How Much Does a Polar Bear Weigh?