#kermode_bear

Taking a break from fishing by Terry Allen Via Flickr: Spirit bear (ghost bear, Kermode bear, Ursus americanus kermodei) sitting placidly in a salmon river and taking a short break from fishing for the pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) that were migrating up the river to spawn. Gribbell Island Creek (Kwa), Verney Pass, British Columbia. This is an older bear, well known to Marvyn Robinson, the Gitga'at spirit bear whisperer.  www.allenfotowild.com

Near miss by Terry Allen Via Flickr: It was fun to watch the Kermode bears (spirit bears, a rare white genetic variant of black bears) fishing for salmon in a creek on Gribbell Island, on north coastal British Columbia. They can only be seen in a very small area of the BC coast and occur nowhere else in the world. The bears gorge during the fall when the salmon swim up the streams to spawn and this guy had just missed catching a salmon that was swimming by. 17/12/2018 www.allenfotowild.com

Ghost bear by Terry Allen Via Flickr: A beautiful spirit bear (ghost bear, Ursus americanus kermodei) comes out off the woods at the edge of a salmon river on Gribbell Island to eat the nutrition-rich salmon that sustain it throughout its winter hibernation. Gribbell is one of small number of islands in the Hartley Bear area that host this rare genetic variation of the black bear. The white colour is due to a double recessive gene unique in the subspecies and the bear is considered sacred to the Gitga'at and Kitasoo First Nations bands that live in the area. We were guests of the Gitga'at people of Hartley Bay and their 'bear whisperer' Marven Robinson. He has made a life time work of getting to know and protect this rare wild bear species, and he trains young members of the band to help him in this special work. This is a young bear that they have named 'Warrior' for the scar on its nose. 16/10/2017 www.allenfotowild.com

The chase by Terry Allen Via Flickr: An older spirit bear (ghost bear, Kermode bear, Ursus americanus kermodei) chases a pink salmon in Gribbell Island Creek. During the fall salmon run the bears on the coast feed up on the nutrition-rich fish that sustain them through their winter hibernation. Gribbell is one of two islands in the Hartley Bear area that host this rare genetic variation of the black bear. The white colour is due to a double recessive gene unique in the subspecies. The spirit bears are considered sacred to the Gitga'at First Nation, and the band members protect the bear and its fragile habitat. 14/01/2017 www.allenfotowild.com

The chase by Terry Allen Via Flickr: An older spirit bear (ghost bear, Kermode bear, Ursus americanus kermodei) chases a pink salmon in Gribbell Island Creek. During the fall salmon run the bears on the coast feed up on the nutrition-rich fish that sustain them through their winter hibernation. Gribbell is one of two islands in the Hartley Bear area that host this rare genetic variation of the black bear. The white colour is due to a double recessive gene unique in the subspecies. The spirit bears are considered sacred to the Gitga'at First Nation, and the band members protect the bear and its fragile habitat. 14/01/2017 www.allenfotowild.com

The chase by Terry Allen Via Flickr: An older spirit bear (ghost bear, Kermode bear, Ursus americanus kermodei) chases a pink salmon in Gribbell Island Creek. During the fall salmon run the bears on the coast feed up on the nutrition-rich fish that sustain them through their winter hibernation. Gribbell is one of two islands in the Hartley Bear area that host this rare genetic variation of the black bear. The white colour is due to a double recessive gene unique in the subspecies. The spirit bears are considered sacred to the Gitga'at First Nation, and the band members protect the bear and its fragile habitat. 14/01/2017 www.allenfotowild.com

Ghost bear by Terry Allen Via Flickr: A beautiful spirit bear (ghost bear, Ursus americanus kermodei) comes out off the woods at the edge of a salmon river on Gribbell Island to eat the nutrition-rich salmon that sustain it throughout its winter hibernation. Gribbell is one of small number of islands in the Hartley Bear area that host this rare genetic variation of the black bear. The white colour is due to a double recessive gene unique in the subspecies and the bear is considered sacred to the Gitga'at and Kitasoo First Nations bands that live in the area. We were guests of the Gitga'at people of Hartley Bay and their 'bear whisperer' Marven Robinson. He has made a life time work of getting to know and protect this rare wild bear species, and he trains young members of the band to help him in this special work. This is a young bear that they have named 'Warrior' for the scar on its nose. 16/10/2017 www.allenfotowild.com