As US records show, the largest grizzly bear ever recorded was a real giant
However, it doesn’t hold a candle to the record holder of the brown bear First things first: when talking about records or anything grizzly, it’s important to know what makes a grizzly a grizzly versus another brown bear
As Katmai National Park ranger Cheryl Spencer explains, “All grizzly bears are brown bears
Grizzlies are simply a subspecies of brown bear
The difference is actually where the bear lives” In short, a proper grizzly is a brown bear that lives inland
While brown bears, like Katmai’s fat bear week beasts, “have access to these coastal resources” All of the above is relevant information when searching the internet for records for the largest ever grizzly bear, as many brown bear records are attributed to grizzlies when they shouldn’t be
Brown bears also tend to be larger than grizzlies inland
You’ll find grizzlies and browns with separate records below as a result, each taken from reputable records only The largest grizzly bears ever recorded (Ursus arctos horribilis) In total, there are only six entries into the state of Montana for grizzly bears, as the species has been protected since 1975 (two years after the Endangered Species Act was enacted)
Regardless, Montana provides an official historical record of their brown bears, which are true inland grizzlies
For these reasons, the state is the most reliable source for the record holding grizzly bear Largest Grizzly Bear Ever Recorded in Montana: 25 9/16 Skull Measurement This grizzly was taken from the Missouri River Breaks in 1890 by ES vault
The skull of this bear now resides in the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
(source) As the top record illustrates, grizzly bear records are recorded by their skull measurements
While this allows scoring of older discoveries, it does not provide official measurements for the largest grizzly bears
To that end, we look at Montana’s third-largest on record, as the contenders for second place are disputed: Montana’s third-largest grizzly bear on record: Montana’s Lincoln Grizzly “Lincoln Grizzly” is on permanent display at the Lincoln District Ranger Office
( Source ) While tall tales of giant 1,200-pound grizzlies persist, Lincoln Grizzly’s weight reveals a more realistic measurement
The brown bear species do reach a much larger size, but the majority are coastal brown bears (which, again, are larger than a grizzly) The largest ever recorded come from Alaska
There, a unique titanic bear population has grown up during 12,000 years of genetic isolation in the country’s Kodiak region and islands
And as the record holder shows, the brown’s skull holds a whopping 5 inches above Montana’s largest recorded grizzly:
Alaska Brown Bear World Record: 30 Skull Measurement 12/16 This brown bear was photographed near Kodiak’s Carlock Lake in late May 1952 “The huge bear was shot by Roy R
With a skull score of 28 4/16, “Its skin was more than 9 feet square, and Alaskan biologists estimated that this giant bruin was more than 20 years old,” quotes hunter and naturalist John McAdams of The Big Game Hunt The all-time record probably stood between 9 and 10 feet on its hind legs in life
It is a true giant, and easily one of the largest bears – brown or grizzly – that ever lived For an in-depth look at the difference between grizzlies and browns, see our National Parks Diary: Katmai Ranger Cheryl Spencer Explains the Difference Between Browns and Grizzlies next