Skull-Based Method of Age Determination for the Brown Bear Ursus arctos Linnaeus, 1758

Due to the lack of a proper technique for determining the ages of brown bears, a simple and straightforward method that is based on published data and our own observations is proposed. This method is based on the simultaneous use of the following different skull parameters to more accurately determine the ages of brown bears: size and weight parameters, degree of obliteration of the joints, degree of wear of the teeth, and development of the flanges. The proposed method contributes to non-destructive age determination, allows for the discrimination of immature and adult bears and also classifies the skulls of adult animals into one of the five selected age groups.