Black vs Grizzly bear – who is who?

I’ve been lucky enough in the past 3 summers to immerse myself in nature and to do this with an expert in wildlife, my boyfriend.

Since seeing my first bear in 2009, it has been my mission to pick out the difference between a black bear and grizzly bear, as other tourists would often shout out that they have just seen a grizzly bear, when, in fact – it was a black bear.

There are a few key differences to help differentiate between the two:

1. Black bears have a straight snout, while grizzlies have a dished in snout/face profile.

2. Black bears do not have a pronounced shoulder hump, while grizzlies do.

3. Black bears ears stick out more, grizzlies are less pronounced.

4. Black bears have shorter claws, you can definitely see grizzlies light long claws a lot more clearly.

5. Black bears, for the most part are much smaller than grizzlies.

Guess the bear – black or grizzly:

Bear #1

Yellowstone National Park

Bear #2

Yellowstone National Park

Bear #3

Yellowstone National Park

Bear #4

Yellowstone National Park

Bear #5

Waterton, Alberta

Bear #6

Waterton, Alberta

Bear #7

Kananaskis, Alberta

Answers:

#1 – Grizzly #2 – Black Bear #3 – Grizzly #4 – Black Bear #5 – Black Bear #6 – Black Bear #7 – Grizzly

How did you do?

PS – Read my view on wildlife photography.