Posted by Ranger Bob (165.83.4.130) on April 12, 2002 at 17:56:43:
In Reply to: How much food? posted by margie on April 11, 2002 at 15:18:50:
: How much food (in lbs and calories if you know) do 1)Black Bears and 2)Grizzlys have to eat each day? How much does that amount go up when they are preparing to "hibernate".
: It seems that if bears eat mostly vegetation like grasses and roots, they would have to consume an awful lot! Do they have a significant effect on the plant population in frequent feeding areas?
Hello Margie,
Great question!
You would have to do a lot of following and looking to figure this one out. Actually, we are unsure of the answer. Since their food sources change so much throughout the year, this would be a very hard statistic to estimate.
Definitely the amount of caloric intake goes up during hyperphagia (prior to denning). In order to accumulate enough fat for denning, bears may eat up to 20,000 calories per day. Black bears add 4 inches of fat gaining 2-3 pounds a day. Grizzlies add 6-8 inches of fat during this period.
Since bears range so far, they eat from lots of different places. If they find a good food source, they may actually help the soil since they will be turning so much of it.