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Buffy's
Corner
/ BEAR FACTS
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Buffy
preparing for hibernation |
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Scientific
Name:
Ursus
americanus
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Hibernation:
Prior to hibernation bears add
four inches of fat, gaining two to three pounds a day.
They also...
- do not eat
- do not urinate
- do not defecate
- curl up to conserve heat
- change position in den
- may be aroused and attack
an intruder
- slough paw pads
- lose weight (15% to 30%)
- metabolism slows
- digestive organs and
kidneys shut down almost completely
- Uses 4000 calories/day from
their fat reserve
- Poisonous wastes,
by-products broken down
- Heart rate 20 to 30 beats
per minute (normal 70/min) This is with Buffy.
- Normal body temperature is
over 100, in hibernation it drops only a few degrees.
- Some southern populations
do not hibernate during mild winters, bears of Louisiana,
Florida, and Arizona sleep only a few days at a time in a
den.
- Breathing: 6-10
respirations per minute
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Diet:
frogs, fish, ants, invertebrates, small vertebrates, crayfish,
grubs, carcasses, bees, eggs, human garbage, berries,
mushrooms, grasses, fruits, nuts, seeds, honey, herbs, cambium
(underbark), acorns, melons, vegetables.
Range:
3.6 to 108 square miles
Speed:
25-30 mph
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