Our main aims are to elucidate the pattern of epigenomic divergence that characterize the European populations of the brown bear (U. arctos) and to explore clues of local adaptation in small and isolated brown bear populations, with special emphasis on the population from the Apennines (U. a. marsicanus). Patterns will be explored using Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) approaches to provide a new perspective on small population management in light of phenotypic and ecological inter-populational differences. A special emphasis will be on the role of epigenetic polymorphisms of small and genetically depauperate populations in preserving an adequate level of phenotypic plasticity, hence evolutionary potential. The outcomes of the research are twofold: it will be instrumental to enhance our understanding of microevolutionary processes and adaptive plasticity in brown bears and on the other hand, it will contribute to assess the effect of bottlenecks on the viability of small populations and practical conservation measures meant to enhance the fitness and the viability of small and fragmented brown bear populations across Eurasia. Our study rests on the adoption and the integration of innovative sources of information (genomic-epigenomic-transcriptomic), particularly powerful but still largely neglected in conservation.