Measuring Instructions for Alaskan Brown Bears and Grizzly Bears:
When it comes to scoring brown bears, or any game animal for that matter, there are four major record keeping organizations when scoring trophy big game. Each organization has its standards for recording, official scorers, and what counts as legal harvest, but ultimately the measuring process is very similar.
There can be a lot of confusion when it comes to measuring trophy big game. When talking about the ‘books’, especially for less experienced hunters, it can be hard to know exactly what we’re talking about. To make it easy for you, all the information is compared below.
Boone & Crockett
On a clean skull with lower jaw removed and dried for 30 days, measure using calipers to the nearest 1/16th inch. Measure parallel the longitudinal axis, this is the longest (from the back of the skull to front teeth) measurement down the center of the skull. Add this to the widest measurement perpendicular to the longitudinal axis (the outside edges of the cheek bones). Add the two numbers together to get your final score.
Minimum Alaskan Brown Bear: 26”
Minimum Grizzly Bear: 23”
Pope & Young
Same as Boone & Crockett
Minimum Alaskan Brown Bear: 20”
Minimum Grizzly Bear: 19”
Rowland Ward
Same as Boone & Crockett, any wounds/damage to skull that cause teeth to protrude must be excluded from measurement.
Minimum Alaskan Brown Bear: 26”
Minimum Grizzly Bear: 23”
Safari Club
Same as Boone & Crockett but including the lower jaw if it will increase the measurement.
Minimum Alaskan Brown Bear: 25”
Minimum Grizzly Bear: 22”
If measuring in metric, measure to the 0.1cm.
Ultimately it all boils down to the minimum measurements for entry. What is important to remember is that record books are not for bragging rights. Many hunters do not submit their record quality game to the record books because the feel they have nothing to prove.
The goal of record keeping is conservation. The purpose behind record keeping is knowing the areas that produce the largest and healthiest game animals to be able to improve game management around the world by providing the most accurate, relevant, and recent information possible.