Orsi bruni e delle caverne, antichi abitatori delle Alpi

The cave bear was among the first inhabitants of the Alpine region. Several caves, in Northern Italy (Liguria and Carso), are particularly rich in bone remains of these animals. Of the two species present in Prehistoric times, the cave bear (Ursus spelaeus), whose dimensions were decisively bigger than the actual brown bear, was the most widespread.In the Alpine caves there are remains of their utilization by ancient humans, while in France can be admired the splendid paintings on the cave walls of various animals, among which the bear was frequently represented. In the Chauvet cave the bear representations date back to 36.000 years before present.Nowadays, we tend to identify the presence of bears with mountain areas, lonely valleys far away from urban centres, but in the past the Plantigrades occupied areas in the plains and on hills. The wide woods which until the Middles Ages covered the Po Valley were the ideal place for bear’s life. Notwithstanding the attempts to reintroduce the bear in the Alps, encountering a bear is still today a rare occurrence. The Alps present a high degree of anthropization, altogether different from the situation in Finland, where an encounter with a bear is still rather easy to take place. Finland represents the European margin of the bear Asiatic populations and maintains a considerable number of bears, whose amount can be calculated at about 30.000 specimens.One of the characteristics that have contributed to the representation of the bear as an animal similar to humans has been its ability to stand up on its hind legs. Often, a bear’s attack has one phase in which it adopts this posture, but, according to many scholars, it is a behaviour rarely utilized by the animal. Instead, it was largely adopted by the bear trainers with their domesticated animals.The morphology of the hind leg, with the toes and metatarsal bones flat on the ground, permits to the animal to stand up and to maintain a discreet stability. Observing with care the position, one can notice however that the thighbone does not achieve the complete verticality, like humans, but remains inclined with a certain angle with respect to the terrain.The bear bones found in caves have been put in association with the bears only since the 1700s. Previously, these remains have given rise to folk legends regarding imaginary animals, particularly dragons. These traditions have left their traces in many place names, which still today carry the name of “Dragon Cave”, and so forth, reminding of the mysterious presence of this animal both in nature and in man’s imagination.