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1 June 2013 Predation on adult moose Alces alces by European brown bears Ursus arctos
Bjørn Dahle, Kjell Wallin, Göran Cederlund, Inga-Lill Persson, Line S. Selvaag, Jon E. Swenson
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Abstract

Several North American studies have reported significant predation rates on moose Alces alces by brown bears Ursus arctos. We documented predation on moose by brown bears in south-central Sweden, where brown bears and moose occurred at estimated densities of 10-30 and 400-1,340/1,000 km2, respectively. Bears killed 0.8% of radio-collared adult female moose (i.e. ≥ 1 year old) annually and no male moose (≥ 1 year old). Bear predation was the least important mortality factor we documented. Based on tracking brown bears on snow during spring we recorded one successful hunt for every 372 km of tracks and documented attacks only by adult bears and successful attacks only by adult males. Autopsy of moose older than calves that were killed by brown bears revealed that yearlings were more prone to predation than older moose, and that older (i.e. ≥ 2 years) cows were more vulnerable to predation than older bulls. Our study suggests a lower tendency for Scandinavian brown bears to prey on moose compared to most of the North American studies.

Bjørn Dahle, Kjell Wallin, Göran Cederlund, Inga-Lill Persson, Line S. Selvaag, and Jon E. Swenson "Predation on adult moose Alces alces by European brown bears Ursus arctos," Wildlife Biology 19(2), 165-169, (1 June 2013). https://doi.org/10.2981/10-113
Received: 28 October 2010; Accepted: 1 November 2012; Published: 1 June 2013
KEYWORDS
Alces alces
brown bear
kill rate
moose
predation
Ursus arctos
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