| Kermode Bear or spirit bear | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Carnivora |
| Family: | Ursidae |
| Genus: | Ursus |
| Species: | U. americanus |
| Subspecies: | U. a. kermodei |
| Trinomial name | |
| Ursus americanus kermodei Hornaday, 1905 |
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The Kermode bear (Ursus americanus kermodei, pron. kerr-MO-dee), also known as a "spirit bear" (particularly to the Native tribes of Alaska), is a subspecies of the American Black Bear living in the central and north coast of British Columbia, Canada.[1] It is noted for about 1/10 of their population having white or cream-coloured coats. This colour morph is due to a recessive allele common in the population. They are not albinos[1] and not any more related to polar bears or the "blonde" brown bears of Alaska's "ABC Islands" than other members of their species.
National Geographic estimates the spirit bear population at 400-1000 individuals, saying that "the spirit bear may owe its survival to the protective traditions of the First Nations, who never hunted the animals or spoke of them to fur trappers".[2]
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Because of their ghost-like appearance, "spirit bears" hold a prominent place in the mythology of the Canadian First Nations and American Indians of the area.[3] Scientists have found that black bears are not as effective at catching fish as white bears, as the white bears are less visible from the perspective of the fish. While at night the two colors of bears have similar success rates at catching fish, such as salmon, during the day the white bears are 30% more effective.[4]
The Kermode bear was named after Francis Kermode, former director of the Royal B.C. Museum,[1] who researched the subspecies and a colleague of William Hornaday, the zoologist who described it.[5][6]
The kermodei subspecies ranges from Princess Royal Island to Prince Rupert, British Columbia on the coast, and inland toward Hazelton, British Columbia. It is known to the Tsimshian people as Moksgm'ol. In the February 2006 Speech from the Throne by the Government of British Columbia, the Lieutenant Governor announced her government's intention to designate the Kermode or spirit bear as British Columbia's official animal. A male Kermode bear can reach 225 kg (500 lb) or more, females are much smaller with a maximum weight of 135 kg (300 lb). Straight up it stands 180 cm (6 ft) tall.
It is estimated that there are fewer than 400 Kermode bears in the coast area that stretches from the Alaska panhandle southwards to the northern tip of Vancouver Island. [7] And approximately 120 Spirit Bears inhabit the large Princess Royal Island.[7]
The bear's habitat is potentially under threat from the Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipelines, whose planned route passes near the Great Bear Rainforest.[8][9] Native groups including the Gitga'at have opposed the pipeline.[10]