What Does “A Maul of Bears” Mean?
“Maul” is a blunt, physical word, and it points to the tension involved whenever normally solitary bears are forced into close proximity. Bears aren’t social animals by nature; most species live and hunt alone, and adult males in particular can be aggressive toward one another over territory, food, or mates.
The clearest real-world version of a “maul” happens at seasonal food bonanzas, most famously the salmon runs that draw brown bears to rivers like Alaska’s Brooks Falls in huge numbers. Dozens of bears that would otherwise never tolerate each other’s company end up fishing the same stretch of river, and while outright fighting is less common than tolerance and posturing, disputes over prime fishing spots do happen, and size generally determines who gets the best position.
Outside of these food-driven gatherings, “maul” is really describing the potential for conflict built into forcing solitary animals to share space, not an everyday bear social structure.
Example: “A maul of bears crowded the falls each August, jockeying for the best fishing spots.”
Related: Collective Nouns for Mammals