Welcome back to Myth Monday! It’s, once again, time to get our facts right. This week, we are addressing something that stumps A LOT of our guests when they see our brown bears.

Myth: Coastal brown bears are a subspecies of brown bear.

If you’ve visited AWCC and been lucky enough to see our bears, you’ll have noticed that our male brown bear, Joe Boxer (JB), is huge. Whereas, our older female brown bear, Hugo, is a little smaller. Look here!

JB (left), Hugo (right)

So why is that? Is it because JB is a male and Hugo is a female? Well—in part, but there’s a little more to it.

What’s the truth?

JB and his sister, Patron, are both considered a geographical distinction (not a subspecies) of brown bear called a coastal brown bear. Guess where coastal brown bears live! That’s right, they live on the coast, where they have access to a rich protein diet. Coastal brown bears tend to have greater access to salmon and other fish that help account for why they get so big.

On the other hand, Hugo is a grizzly bear, or what would be known as an interior brown bear. These bears are not normally found in coastal areas, and as a result, they do not get nearly as much protein in their diet. Thus, they are smaller!

Fun Fact: In Alaska, coastal brown bears are referred to as ‘brown bears,’ and grizzly bears are referred to as ‘interior bears.’

Okay we get it, it can be confusing. So, let’s focus on our bears again. Both JB, who is a coastal brown bear, and Hugo, who is a grizzly bear, are living here at AWCC in the lovely Portage Valley, Alaska (and have since they were cubs). Why is there such a large size difference, despite them living in the same place? Diet can’t account for ALL size differences. Their size difference is, in part, due to their genetics and where they originated from.

Coastal brown bears like JB are genetically adapted to take advantage of richer food sources—like salmon runs—which support their larger body size. Even if JB isn’t fishing in the wild anymore, his body is still “programmed” to grow larger based on the evolutionary advantages his ancestors had.

Grizzly bears like Hugo, on the other hand, come from interior regions where food is scarcer and more seasonal. Over generations, this led to a naturally smaller body size as a more energy-efficient survival strategy.

So, even though JB and Hugo eat similar diets now and live in the same habitat, their size reflects their lineage and the environments their species evolved in—not just what’s on the menu today.

Why does it matter?

1.Conservation and Habitat Protection: These bears have different habitat needs. Coastal brown bears rely heavily on salmon-rich rivers and coastal ecosystems, while grizzlies roam vast inland territories. Protecting each type of bear requires understanding their specific environments and behaviors.

2. Wildlife Management: Wildlife officials use this information to make science-based decisions about bear populations, including setting hunting regulations, managing human-bear interactions, and tracking population health.

3. Education and Awareness: When visitors like you come to places like AWCC, understanding these distinctions helps people appreciate the diversity within a species. Not all brown bears are the same—there’s rich variety shaped by geography, diet, and evolution!

4. Safety and Respect in the Wild: Knowing how different bears behave can help people stay safe in bear country. For example, coastal brown bears may behave differently than grizzlies due to food availability or territory norms.

I’m glad we are all on the same page to start the week off. Tune in next week to unlearn some more things!