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Article: Blondes prefer blondes: peering into the private life of the elusive Kermode bear. (Columbiana).(Brief Article)
- Article from:
- Beautiful British Columbia
- Article date:
- June 22, 2002
- Author:
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Copyright informationCOPYRIGHT 2002 Beautiful British Columbia Magazine. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Whether or not blondes have more fun, it appears they do prefer their own company. Dr. Kermit Ritland, a University of British Columbia population geneticist, believes that B.C.'s rare blonde Kermode bears practice "preferential mating," a habit that helps to sustain their small central coast concentrations.
Ritland's research, published last September in Current Biology, proves that the unusual, almost eerie white or golden colour of Ursus americanus kermodei -- actually a member of the common black bear family -- is determined by a recessive gene. "All animals have this gene that determines coat colour," says Ritland, "but the Kermode bear has a unique ...
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