Brown bear

The brown bear, Ursus arctos is an animal of the family Ursidae. It is the largest predator in Bulgaria. The sizes vary according to the populations and according to the season, while the males are on average 30% larger than the females. The male in our exhibition holds a record in size for the Balkan Peninsula - 2, 45 m; it was donated by Mr. Atanas Petrov and was awarded with a gold medal for the country. Like all bears, brown bears can stand on their hind legs and walk for a while in this position, unlike most predators. Usually, bears are motivated to do this out of curiosity, hunger or threat. In Bulgaria, the brown bear is represented by two subpopulations inhabiting the two largest mountain massifs in the country - the Balkan and Rila-Rhodope Mountains. The total area of ​​distribution of the species is about 1 100 000 ha.