The brown bear (Ursus arctos) is a large bear with the widest distribution of any living ursid. The species is distributed across much of northern Eurasia and North America. It is one of the two largest terrestrial carnivorans alive today, rivaled in body size only by its close cousin, the polar bear (Ursus maritimus), which is much less variable in size and averages larger due to this. There are several recognized subspecies, many of which are quite well-known within their native ranges, found in the brown bear species.