[5] The white variant is known as spirit bear, and is most common on three islands in British Columbia (Gribbell, Princess Royal, and Roderick), where they make up 10–20% of the Kermode population.

[6] Spirit bears hold a prominent place in the oral traditions of the indigenous peoples of the area.

They have also been featured in a National Geographic documentary[7] and in the BBC TV series Planet Earth III.

[5] Kermode bears are omnivorous for most of the year, subsisting mainly on herbage and berries except during autumn salmon migrations, when they become obligate predators.

[14] The largest concentration of the white bears inhabits 80-square-mile (210 km2) Gribbell Island, in the territory of the Gitgaʼata people.

[15][22] Using noninvasive hair-line traps scientists tracked the movement of grizzlies across the coasts and rainforest.

[21] In October 2012, a Kermode bear, believed to be the first in captivity, became a resident of the British Columbia Wildlife Park in Kamloops.

After two unsuccessful attempts to rehabilitate and release him back into the wild, the cub, now nicknamed Clover by handlers, was sent to the park when conservation officers decided that he was not a candidate for relocation.

[25] Animal-rights group Lifeforce believed that the bear was healthy enough to survive on his own and that he should be relocated and released back into the wild.

[26] Provincial government wildlife officials maintained their position against attempting a long-distance relocation, stating that the risks outweighed the possible benefits, and as of February 2023[update], the bear remains in captivity.