# Brown bear (*Ursus arctos*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/brown-bear  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The brown bear (Ursus arctos), also called the grizzly bear, is a large mammal in the bear family Ursidae, order Carnivora. Adults weigh 180.5 kg, with values up to 240.5 kg reported by our sources. It is a diurnal, terrestrial animal of desert, forest, grassland, shrubland and wetland habitats, and its diet category is herbivore. The brown bear is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 180.5 kg – 240.5 kg |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | 43.5 years – 50 years |
| Diet | Herbivore |
| Main food | apple, beaver, berry, bison, carrion, cattle and 48 more |
| Habitat | desert, forest, grassland, shrubland, wetland |
| Gestation | 103 days – 304 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 2 – 3 |
| Age at maturity | 3.61 years |
| Litters or clutches a year | 0.4 |
| Reproduction | Live birth |
| Active | By day (diurnal) |
| Lifestyle | Terrestrial |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Mammalia
- order: Carnivora
- family: Ursidae
- genus: Ursus
- species: *Ursus arctos* Linnaeus, 1758

Synonyms: *Ursus arctos arctos*, *Ursus arctos lasiotus*

## Common questions

### How heavy is a brown bear?

An adult brown bear weighs 180.5 kg, and our sources report values up to 240.5 kg.

### What does the brown bear eat?

Its diet category is herbivore, and its main foods include berry, apple, honey, mushroom, tuber, insect, fish, salmon, moose, red deer and carrion.

### Is the brown bear endangered?

No. The brown bear is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does a brown bear live?

The brown bear has a lifespan of 43.5 years, with values up to 50 years reported by our sources.

### How many young does a brown bear have?

A brown bear litter has 2.27 young, from 2 to 3, with 0.4 litters per year.

### What habitats does the brown bear live in?

The brown bear lives in desert, forest, grassland, shrubland and wetland habitats, and it is terrestrial and diurnal.

### Who named the brown bear?

The brown bear, Ursus arctos, was named by Linnaeus, 1758.

### At what age does a brown bear reach sexual maturity?

A brown bear reaches sexual maturity at 3.6 years (1,317 days).

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1), CC0 1.0, 1.0. Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Brown bear (Ursus arctos). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/brown-bear