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Steppe brown bear

Disputed extinct subspecies of brown bear

This taxon may be invalid (Unclear geological age and skull similarity with modern brown bear). Redirect to the correct taxon or request deletion by adding a {{subst:prod|concern=TEXT}} tag. See this article's talk page for more information. (April 2022)

Ursus arctos priscus Temporal range: Pleistocene PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Illustration of a steppe brown bear battling a cave lion
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Carnivora
Family:	Ursidae
Genus:	Ursus
Species:	U. arctos
Subspecies:	†U. a. priscus
Trinomial name
†Ursus arctos priscus

The steppe brown bear (Ursus arctos priscus) is a disputed extinct subspeciesofbrown bear that lived in Eurasia during either the Pleistocene or the early Holocene epochs, but its geological age is uncertain.^[1] Fossils of the bear have been found in various cavesinSlovakia, particularly those of Vazec, Vyvieranie, Lisková, Kupcovie Izbicka, and Okno.^[2] It is argued that the subspecies should be rendered invalid, as its geological age is unclear and "its skull is identical to modern U. arctos."^[3][1]

Adult males in average would have weighed 700–800 kg (1,500–1,800 lb), with the largest individuals weighing up to 1,000 kg (2,200 lb).^[4] It was more carnivorous than a modern brown bear, consuming 50 kg (110 lb) of meat per day.^[4]

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