THE WORLD OF NATURE, CEATOROF ALL, EVOLVING.
HOW MUCH BETTER OFF WE WOULD BE IF IT WERE STILL ALIVE, INSTEAD OF A RUG OR TROPHY?
Polar Bear-Grizzly Hybrid Discovered Simply through shooting this unique animal the superheroes, may well have destroyed not only the only chance either species had for survival but they undoubtably contributed to man's eventual extinction as well. Hybridization (often called assimilation when used in reference to humans), would allow the polar bear to leave the ice packs, while the grizzly could survive higher up into the tundra; due to global warming and the TROPHY HUNTING, it may well have been the only hope either species had for survival and to avoid extinction.
THE POLAR BEAR (AN ENDANGERED SPECIES ON THE VERGE ON EXTINCTION) IS THE WORLD’S ONLY CARNIVEROUS BEAR.
THE PROUD SUPERHEROES
May 11, 2006—DNA analysis has confirmed that a bear shot in the Canadian Arctic last month is a half-polar bear, half-grizzly hybrid. While, as the three bear cubs show; the two bear species have interbred in zoos, this is the first evidence of a wild polar bear-grizzly offspring.
Jim Martell , a 65-year-old hunter from Idaho, shot the bear April 16 on the southern tip of Banks Island the CanWest News Service reports.
Wildlife officials seized the bear after noticing its white fur was interspersed with brown patches. It also had long claws, a concave facial profile, and a humped back, which are characteristic of a grizzly.
Now the genetic tests have confirmed that the hybrid's father was a grizzly and its mother was a polar bear.
"I don't think anyone expected it to actually happen in the wild," said Ian Stirling, a polar bear expert with the Canadian Wildlife Service in Edmonton.
Polar bears and grizzlies require an extended mating ritual to reproduce, Stirling said. Both live by themselves in large, open habitats.
To prevent wasting their eggs, females ovulate only after spending several days with a male, Stirling explained. "Then they mate several times over several days."
In other words, the mating between the polar bear and grizzly was more than a chance encounter. "That's what makes it quite interesting," he added.
Stirling says the hybrid has no official name, though locals have taken to calling it a "pizzly" and a "grolar bear."
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Much easier to kill than a bison, bear was once a very popular game animal. The flesh of the Black Bear is treated very much like pork. The fat of a Grizzly, when rendered out becomes oil that will not again congeal and is very useful as a water-proofing agent for leather. The hide of both are as warm as bison but much easier to handle.
After any bear meat is hung, it may be cooked like beef or pork.
Of all the bears in the world, only the polar bear is carnivorous. All others, like humans, raccoons, skunks, most birds and hogs, are omnivorous animals. Omnivores are basically scavengers and will eat any-thing, including meat long dead or that has begun to spoil. This makes omnivores-again including man- much more likely to pick up contagious and life threatening disease, parasites, or a virus. Although some of the original recipes here included state otherwise, I personally believe that all bear meat, like pork should be well cooked and would suggest that it be braised or stewed when-ever possible.
Bear fanciers claim that the ursine diet of mainly vegetables, berries and of course honey gives bear meat an unsurpassable flavour. The neck, rump and legs, (not hind quarter) of the bear are very tough and suitable for nothing except perhaps hamburger.
Bear Steak
The bear should be young and tender.
Rub steak with sliced onion and spread generously with fat. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Broil in a hot oven turning once. Cook at least 20 minutes per pound. .Bear, when cooked, should be treated as pork.
Bear Huntsman Fashion
Lard a 6-pound piece of bear loin with 1/4 lb. larding pork cut into strips. Marinate the meat for 4 to 5 days in an enamelled saucepan or an earthenware crock, turning it from time to time in this marinade.
Mix 1 quart dry white wine and 1 cup vinegar. add 2 onions and 2 carrots, all sliced, 1 bunch celery, coarsely diced, 6 shallots, finely chopped, 2 large bay leaves, 1 large garlic clove, crushed, 16 peppercorns, bruised. 1Tbsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. dried tarragon. Bring the liquid to a boil, boil it up 3 or 4 times, and let it cool.
Strain the marinade, reserve it, and put the vegetables into a roasting pan. Put the meat on top of the vegetables and roast the meat in a hot oven (400 F.) for 15 minutes. Reduce the temperature to moderate (350 F.) and roast the meat for 1- 1/4 hours longer, basting it frequently with the pan drippings. Arrange the meat on a heated platter and keep it hot.
Add 1-1/2 cups strained marinade to the pan drippings, bring it to a boil, and reduce it over high heat to 1 generous cup, stirring and scraping the pan to loosen all the brown bits. Add 1 cup scalded heavy cream, bring the sauce to a boil again, and strain it through a fine sieve, pressing gently to extract the vegetable pulp. Pour half the sauce over the meat and serve the rest separately. Serve with red current jelly.
Bear Steak Fortier
1. Marinate steaks cut from the bear’s rump in an uncooked marinade for 3 or four days, turning the meat from time to time.
2. Wipe the steaks dry and broil them quickly on both sides.
3. Arrange the steaks on a heated platter.
4. Strain the marinade, reduce it by two-thirds and add to it 1 cup heated sour cream. Serve the sauce separately.
Bear Fillet- Larded
1. Neatly trim a whole fillet of bear. Lard it with long narrow strips of fat and with strips of green pepper, if desired.
2. Marinate the fillet in a cooked marinade for several days.
3. Wipe the meat dry and roast it in a very hot oven (450 F. or see roasting methods) for 15 minutes turning it once to brown it well.
4. Reduce the temperature to moderate (350 F.) and continue to roast allowing from this point 12 minutes per pound. Baste frequently with melted fat.
The meat should be very rare (see write up on Bear).
Braised Bear Liver
Parboil for 5 minutes a piece of bear liver weighing 2-1/2 to 3 pounds. Remove the tubes and skin and lard the liver with strips of fresh side pork .Cover the liver with 3 cups white wine and marinate it for 3 hours longer, turning the meat occasionally. Wipe the liver dry and sear it well on all sides in a 1/4 cup hot bacon drippings or lard.
Blend together 2 Tbsp. each of onion and shallot, 4 sprigs of parsley and 1/2 cup mushrooms, all finely minced and 1/2 cup sausage meat. Season with a pinch each of thyme, sage and tarragon, 1 tsp. paprika, salt pepper and cayenne to taste. Put this mixture through the food chopper, add 1 raw egg white, and put it through the food chopper again. Spread it on a thin sheet of larding pork and wrap the pork around the liver.
Lay the liver in a buttered casserole and add the wine in which it was marinated, 8 crushed peppercorns, 2 bruised cloves, 8 sprigs of parsley tied with 1/2 bay leaf and 2 slices lemon. Cover the casserole tightly and braise the liver in a moderate oven (325 F.) for 1-1/2 hours, or until it is tender, turning it halfway through the cooking. Transfer the liver to a heated platter. Spoon off the excess fat, from the liquid in the casserole, strain the sauce, and add 1 cup heated sour cream, salt, pepper, and 1 Tbsp. paprika. Bring the sauce to the boiling point and pour part of it over the liver. Serve the rest of sauce separately.
Caution should be exercised when eating, especially polar bear, liver as the high content can cause vitamin A poisoning.
Braised Grizzly (The American, Kodiak, or Brown Bear)
(3-pounds of meat)
!. Trim off all fat and cut meat into chunks about 2 or 3 inches square. Cover with water and simmer slowly for about 1/2 hour.
2. Marinate in 2 cups tomato juice for 24 hours (use wine if you prefer).
3. Remove meat; pat dry and rub well with garlic.
4. Dredge in flour and brown on all sides in a Dutch oven, using about 2 Tbsp. oil or fat.
5. Add 1 onion, studded with 3 whole allspice or 2 whole cloves; 1 carrot, sliced; 1stalk, sliced; 2 cups water and 1 cup seasoned broth or tomato juice.
6. Cover and simmer slowly until tender, about 3-4 hours.
7. Add whole peeled carrots or bear root and whole potatoes if desired, during the last hour of cooking.
Roast Bear
Trim off fat. Parboil meat over a slow flame for 1/2-1 hour (this draws out excess fat).
Remove meat and lay on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Insert slits of garlic.
Put meat in a preheated oven to brown. Turn heat down shortly to medium-slow (325 F.) and roast 35-40 minutes per pound.
Bear Stew in Burgundy
Cut 2-1/2 pounds lean bear meat from one of the less tender cuts into 1-1/2 ins. cubes and roll them in seasoned flour. Cut 1/4 lb. lean salt pork into cubes and render them over low heat in a heavy skillet. Discard the cracklings and add the pieces of meat and a little clarified butter. Increase the heat and brown the meat well. Add 1 1/2 to 2 cups dry red wine, or enough barley to cover, 1 garlic clove, crushed 1 small bay leaf, and a pinch of thyme. Bring the liquid to a boil, lower and cover the skillet. Simmer the meat very gently for 3 to 4 hours, or until it is tender, adding more wine if necessary. Thirty minutes before the meat is done, add 3 carrots, sliced and 2 dozen small onions browned in butter. Taste for seasoning and serve very hot.
