Is this a grizzly bear or a black bear?

[alexboyprin]

hello! i saw that track today and took a picture. At first, i thought it was pretty large for a black bear..then i think i can see the fang print. So, is this a grizzly bear or a black bear?

Alexboy3481

[RiverOtter]

Grizzly...

Blacks rarely leave claw marks.

[RJ]

Hmmmm I say Black Bear

[fester]

I say grizz.
I have seen lots of black prints with claws but the distance from the pads is a good indicator.

[alexboyprin]

...thanks. that is what i thought. so, there seem to be grizzlies near Princeton! I may have to buy a bigger gun! :)

[snareman1234]

Tough call with the mud, which would help show claws on a BB that usually would not be seen.....whats the width of the pad?

[thetackdriver]

Looks like a black bear to me

[Ride Red]

That's a black bear track.

[TyTy]

yeah, there are grizzlies near princeton. northern cascade grizzly recovery area (or something like that)

[todbartell]

I'm not an expert but I was under the impression that a grizzly's toe pads were in a line and a black bear is more rounded around the front of the pad

I'm pretty sure this is a grizzly track

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/231037_10150173338032992_512917991_6911940_2403083 _n.jpg

[alexboyprin]

...hi...i should have place my hat next to the paw as a reference for size. i do not know how wide it was but i estimate about 5 inches. the claw mark are rare on black, no? yet, there are not so many grizzlies in that area so, i am not sure what it is now. i was carrying my 30-30...if i can confirm it is a grizzly, i may buy something more powerful. like a 45-70.

[ElectricDyck]

The books say if you can draw a straight line between the pad and the toes without going through either it's grizz . So I'd call alexboyprin's a black and tod's a grizz.

[ElectricDyck]

Here's a link:

http://www.mountainnature.com/wildlife/bears/bearid.htm

[bigben]

Grizzly I am thinking nails are more than 2 inches from pad

[RJ]

this is what i've used as a guideline, a straight line from outside toe pad to outside toe pad

http://i53.tinypic.com/t8urlj.jpg

[houndsman]

Both of those tracks that are shoen are black bear . the claws are to close to pads & the toe pads on a griz are big even on small bears

[houndsman]

The toe pads on griz are almost webed

[PointMan]

I vote black bear also

[BromBones]

Black bear. Rounded pad, toe prints following the pad contour around, and claw marks 3/4'' or so from the toe prints. Also you can look at the toe prints themselves - egg shaped and have space in between, where a grizzly the toe prints are fairly round and have little space between - often the toe prints crowd one another to the point where they almost look square.

Some guys get thrown off by the claw prints on spring black bears as they haven't worn them down yet.

[bullelk]

I say black bear.

[chinookkiller]

a big black

[EPM]

black bear hands down

[srupp]

black bear...

steven

[Red_Mist]

i'm thinking black bear.

[Telkwa Hunter]

I say Black Bear as well.

Were you up anywhere near the Lodestone/Whipsaw area ? No doubt a few Grizz around those parts.

[Fisher-Dude]

I say black bear. Keep looking for him, looks like a gooder.

[elkdom]

definitely,that is the rear right paw print of a Hybrid ,,,:neutral:

just a hint, for size reference when picturing tracks, use a bullet, a ball cap, a Toonie coin, etc, as todbartell did in his post,

makes it easy to estimate size of the print,,,

seriously though, it IS a black bear print!

[dutchie]

...thanks. that is what i thought. so, there seem to be grizzlies near Princeton! I may have to buy a bigger gun! :)

There are Grizzlies up in the Whipsaw Area. They have been transplanted and there is a big sign in there saying that.

I know that the picture that is posted above says that is a black bear but I have yet to see a blackbear leave that heavy of a claw mark while walking. When I was deer hunting last year I ran into a grizz up Whipsaw and when I looked at the prints I was not able to draw a line straight through it without hitting pad or toe. (This is why I question using that method)

It is tough to say becasue the claws are pointed down, hence making little pokes in the mud... which is a trait of a Grizz... but the pad is more the trait of a Black bear...

Tough call and I am going to say it is a Grizz... (keep hunting the area though becasue there are some really good bears up Whipsaw!)

Anyways... don't judge a bear by its foot print!!

Dutchie

[REMINGTON JIM]

Black bear !

[hunter1947]

This is a black bear print the claws are close to the toes if a Griz the nails would be further out from the toes if it was a Griz..

[hntcrazy]

Black bear for sure.............

[steel_ram]

Black Bear. Claws are too short for Grizzly, especially for this early in the year.

[Ride Red]

There are Grizzlies up in the Whipsaw Area. They have been transplanted and there is a big sign in there saying that.

I know that the picture that is posted above says that is a black bear but I have yet to see a blackbear leave that heavy of a claw mark while walking. When I was deer hunting last year I ran into a grizz up Whipsaw and when I looked at the prints I was not able to draw a line straight through it without hitting pad or toe. (This is why I question using that method)

It is tough to say becasue the claws are pointed down, hence making little pokes in the mud... which is a trait of a Grizz... but the pad is more the trait of a Black bear...

Tough call and I am going to say it is a Grizz... (keep hunting the area though becasue there are some really good bears up Whipsaw!)

Anyways... don't judge a bear by its foot print!!

Dutchie

The pads have sunk into the soft ground deep enough for the claws to show.

[Hunting guy]

Black bear

[Weezer]

Draw line behind toes if it is behind all toes it is a griz but
if it's going through the top of one toe it's probably a good
black bear . Most early spring bears have long claws but
griz have 3-4" claws

[Phreddy]

I live in Princeton as well, and ran into a grizz crossing the road when I was bringing a load of firewood out of the bush last year. Your track looks a lot like a blackie thought because the toes are in a semi circle and the pad appears to be rounded at the top. I also agree that blackie track often have claw marks at the end of them it's just that a grizz claw marks are quite a bit further from the toe than a blackies. What area were you in? PM me and we can compare notes on your track and my sighting.
For the record though, the girzz is very territorial and about htis time of year the sows are chasing the older cubs off so they can tend their newborn. This requires the newliy independant cub to go find a new territory.

[Telkwa Hunter]

Some info. on Grizzlies in the North Cascades

http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/wld/documents/sea_final.pdf

[cuervosail]

tb has it correct. His pic is of a grizz, alexisboyprin's pic is a black bear. One almost surefire way is draw a line across the base of the toe pads. For a grizz, the pads will all be above (or in front) of that line - for a blackie, one toe will be well below, or behind, that line (in the case of alexboyprin's pic - the right toe).

[Deer_Slayer]

Grizz. I saw one up there last Fall. Black bear track usually more curved. Ministry has been relocating Grizz into this area to re-establish North Cascade population.

[jeff]

thoose claw marks look fake

[quigleyoutwest]

id say fox , probably an artic fox too

[steepNdeep]

Clearly a BLACK bear track. The mud was very wet which is why it showed the claws.

1) The claws are very short - less than a toe length from the tip of the toe - ie: 1.5 inches = Black

2) The line from the outside toe to pad to outside toe ends up on the tip of the last toe = Black

http://out-doors.tv/bp.jpg

http://www.mountainnature.com/images/Animals/BlackBearTrack.JPGBlack bear tracks have a large toe arc. If you line up a straight edge with the base of the large toe, and then with the front of the foot pad, the other end should run between the middle and tip of the small toe. The shorter claws of the black bear often do not leave a visible impression in the ground. The toe imprints of black bears are farther apart, often with a definite space between the toes. Black bear claws are much shorter than those of grizzly bears, usually around 4 cm (1.5 in).

http://www.mountainnature.com/images/Animals/GrizzlyTrack.JPGPrints Grizzly tracks have a minimal arc in the toes. Simply stated, if you line up a straight edge with the base of the large toe, and then with the front of the foot pad, the other end should run between the middle and base of the small toe. Often the long claws are clearly visible in the track. The toe imprints of grizzly bears are close together, usually touching each other. The claws of a grizzly are very long, between 5-10 cm (2-4 in),

[Mountain Hunter]

I'd lean towards black bear too. You can see the straighter line of toes in TB's photo and more curvature across the pad with the small toe further back in the first post photo in the mud.

[Mr. Dean]

100% blackie.

No doubt about it.

[xtremearchery]

I would say Grizz.