Himalayan red bear, Isabelline bear, Dzu-teh
The Himalayan brown bear (Ursus arctos isabellinus ), also known as the Himalayan red bear, isabelline bear or Dzu-Teh, is a subspecies of the brown bear and is known from northern Afghanistan, northern Pakistan, northern India, west China and Nepal. It is the largest mammal in the region, males reaching up to 2.2 m (7 ft) long, while females are a little smaller. The bears are omnivorous and hibernate in dens during the winter. While the brown bear as a species is classified as Least Concern by the IUCN, this subspecies is highly endangered and populations are dwindling.
Himalayan brown bears exhibit sexual dimorphism. Males range from 1.5 to 2.2 m (4 ft 11 in to 7 ft 3 in) long, while females are 1.37 to 1.83 m (4 ft 6 in to 6 ft 0 in) long. They are the largest animals in the Himalayas and are usually sandy or reddish-brown in colour.
The bears are found in Nepal, Tibet, west China, north India, north Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, entire Kyrgyzstan and south-east Kazakhstan. They are already speculated to have become extinct in Bhutan. Phylogenetic analysis has shown that the Gobi bear clusters with the Himalayan brown bear and may represent a relict population of this subspecies.
The bears go into hibernation around October and emerge during April and May. Hibernation usually occurs in a den or cave made by the bear.
Himalayan brown bears are omnivores and will eat grasses, roots and other plants as well as insects and small mammals; they also like fruits and berries. They will also prey on large mammals, including sheep and goats. Adults will eat before sunrise and later during the afternoon.
International trade is prohibited by the Wildlife Protection Act in India. Snow Leopard Foundation (SLF) in Pakistan conducts research on the current status of Himalayan brown bears in the Pamir Range in Gilgit-Baltistan, a promising habitat for the bears and a wildlife corridor connecting bear populations in Pakistan to central Asia.
The project also intends to investigate the conflicts humans have with the bears, while promoting tolerance for bears in the region through environmental education. SLF received funding from the Prince Bernhard Nature Fund and Alertis. Unlike other brown bear subspecies, which are found in good numbers, the Himalayan brown bear is critically endangered.
They are poached for their fur and claws for ornamental purposes and internal organs for use in medicines. They are killed by shepherds to protect their livestock and their home is destroyed by human encroachment. In Himachal, their home is the Kugti and Tundah wildlife sanctuaries and the tribal Chamba region. The tree bearing the state flower of Himachal, buransh, is the favourite habitat of the bear. Due to the high value of the buransh tree, it is commercially cut causing further destruction to the brown bear's home.
The populations in Pakistan are slow reproducing, small, and declining because of habitat loss, fragmentation, poaching, and bear-baiting. In India, brown bears are present in 23 protected areas in the northern states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttaranchal, but only in two of these the bears are regarded as fairly common. There are about 150- 200 bears in total.
