Grizzly Bear nurses cub on an Alaska riverbank

A female grizzly bear nurses her young cub on the banks of the McNeil river in Katmai National Park, Alaska. Another grizzly ken be seen in the background; grizzly bears will not tolerate the presence of other bears except during the salmon run. During the annual salmon run, the food supply becomes so over populated that hundreds of bears can feed off of the same river without any food scarcity, so the bears put aside their differences and have the feast of the year.

Young grizzlies such as the one pictured here generally will watch while their mother fish. A mature male grizzly can kill a cub if it perceives it as a threat, and catches the cub outside of the protection of its mother.

Stock Image #20080815-120544