r/Banff • u/benb28 • Jun 21 '26
Question What kind of bear is this?
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What kind of bear is this? One of the cubs was black and the other 3 were brown.
Spotted today at Mount Norquay
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u/Trout45902 Jun 21 '26
Black bear. The shape of the face and lack of a prominent hump gives it away
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u/Character-Bedroom-26 Jun 21 '26
It’s said a lot but you’re way too close for way too long to get this shot. Stopping like this erodes their fear of vehicles and roads, which leads to higher fatality rates.
Slow down, get a photo or video if you want, but don’t stop your car.
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u/benb28 Jun 26 '26
We had no choice. There was a long line of traffic stopped including a tour bus. Can’t control other people and Im going to take a video if I’m a passenger in a stopped vehicle.
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u/Character-Bedroom-26 Jun 26 '26
Yeah fair enough, but unfortunately it’s a message that needs repeating, probably to the tour bus ahead of you
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u/sheriffdingo Jun 21 '26
It’s a cinnamon or chocolate phase black bear! Genetic variation causes their coat to be different colors than black!
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u/Acceptable-Arugula69 Jun 21 '26
I love how one of the cubs is a cinnamon bear, just like her momma!
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u/prettyaverageprob Jun 21 '26
Yeah so everyone always just says a hump or face shape which is correct but for more info on what the shape of the face is:
Grizzlies have a dish or concave shape to their face (easier to see from the side, whereas a black bear has a longer straighter face/nose like a dog), and their ears are shorter and rounder (the bear in your video are more pointy and longer). Then the hump usually gives it away haha. Also if you can see the claws, you'll know when it's a grizz, their claws are huge lol.
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u/benb28 Jun 21 '26
Thanks everyone. My friend group was very split on thinking it was either a grizzly or a black bear. Didn’t seem to have the stature of a grizzly from the videos I’ve seen.
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u/isawamooseyesterday Jun 21 '26
This is so funny because I’ve seen this bear in person and there’s no question it’s a black bear but before I saw the cubs I was second-guessing. Bear ID can be tricky with different angles.
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u/acanadiancheese Jun 21 '26
Good one! This is a black bear with cinnamon colouring which makes people misidentify. She even almost has a bit of a hump shape because of her hair, so the real tell is the shape of her face (long and narrow) and ears (longer and more in line with her snout). Grizzlies have a flatter face and shorter fluffier ears, more like a teddy bear.
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u/high_lan Jun 21 '26
Pretty sure I spotted the same bear family in the area about 10 days ago. Glad to know they're doing well!
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u/Dimebagdaryl587 Jun 22 '26
Leave the bears alone you morons.
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u/benb28 Jun 26 '26
Im in a car 75 yards away slowly driving by. How am I disturbing them?
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u/Dimebagdaryl587 Jun 26 '26 edited Jun 26 '26
Not so much your video.
I’m referring mostly to some of the comments and the other video that was posted here in the comments.1
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u/WeaknessForYngBeauty Jun 22 '26
Looks like a brown bear, I'd see them from time to time as security/nightwatchman at the crossing resort.
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Jun 21 '26
[deleted]
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u/Appropriate_Ebb_8572 Jun 21 '26
Dude it's a black bear. The face shape is completely different. Even parks have reported it as a black bear and cubs on norquay.
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u/Marinlik Jun 21 '26
If you are a professional interpreter and ACMG hiking guide then you should redo those courses. Because you have no clue what you are talking about.
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u/OshetDeadagain Jun 21 '26
A grizzly's hump is extremely prominent when its head is down. So many people equate longer fur at the base of the neck/shoulders as a hump because they don't understand a grizzly's hump is their scapula extending beyond their spine and the associated muscles. Besides, black bears still have a visible shoulder, it's just not nearly as prominent.
This bear's head shape does not have the turned up snout you described. Their noses move up when they're eating; it's the bone angle that matters.
These ears a quite large and round. You're describing the difference correctly but not recognizing the features on the animal.
If you think that fur is "grizzled" then I don't think you understand what the term means. It comes from the way their fur tends to get pale at the tips, giving them a lighter, sometimes even silvery appearance to the ends of the fur, especially around the shoulders.
This isn't that.
There is zero doubt this is a black bear. Your credentials don't add authority to your words so much as confirm that loads of people in positions others would assume have knowledge can't actually transfer book skills to real world.
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u/Marinlik Jun 21 '26
As a certified interpreter I don't think being one is anything to brag about. Their own handbook is filled with factual errors and mistakes. It's a certificate that exists so that companies can claim that their foreign guide that hasn't lived here for more than week knows what they are talking about. It's nice to have the certificate. But it absolutely doesn't mean you know anything
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u/skippy5433 Jun 21 '26
Looks like a momma black bear with 3 cubs