Nutrient intake and its possible drivers in free-ranging European brown bears ().

The dietary nutrient profile has metabolic significance and possibly contributes to species' foraging behavior. The brown bear () was used as a model species for which dietary ingredient and nutrient concentrations as well as nutrient ratios were determined annually, seasonally and per reproductive class. Brown bears had a vertebrate- and ant-dominated diet in spring and early summer and a berry-dominated diet in fall, which translated into protein-rich and carbohydrate-rich diets, respectively.