The bear is considered the largest predator on earth; this species originated on the planet about 6 million years ago.
All about bears
The body length of the predator, depending on the species, varies from 1.2 to 3 meters, weight can reach up to 1 ton, the jaws are very powerful, and the limbs are slightly curved and short.
The bear can reach a speed of up to 50 km/h, with the help of large and sharp claws it can easily climb a tree, tear apart its prey, and pull out plant roots from under the ground.
Most bears are good swimmers.
Life expectancy can reach 45 years. They have a good sense of smell.
The bear's fur is very hard and thick, the color has various shades from brown to black, white or black and white, and gray hair may appear with age.
The tail of predators is almost invisible, only in the panda it is clearly pronounced.
Varieties and photos of bears
Zoologists distinguish eight main species of bears and many varieties:
Brown bear
Its external characteristics are: a large head, a rather powerful body, small ears and eyes, an almost invisible tail, large paws with large claws.
The color of six, depending on the habitat, can be brown, gray or even reddish. Brown bears are found in North America, Europe, Asia, and the Scandinavian Peninsula.
Polar bear (white)
It is the largest predator of the bear family: the weight can be more than one ton, the body length is about three meters, the head is flattened, and the neck is long. The coat color can be pure white or slightly yellowish.
The fur on the soles of the paws is very thick, which allows the bear to easily walk on ice without slipping.
Feels comfortable in the water and swims well. Lives in regions of the Northern Hemisphere.
Baribal (black)
Unlike the brown bear, it is smaller in size and its coat color is very black. It can be more than 2 meters long, the female is 1.5 m.
Elongated muzzle, long paws, short feet, gray or brown color. Lives in the territories of Alaska, Canada, Mexico.
Malayan bear
Very small, as a rule, body length no more than 1.3-1.5 m, height at the withers about 0.5 m. Stocky build, wide muzzle, small ears. The paws are high, the feet are long with large claws.
The bear's fur is very hard, black-brown in color, and has a white-red spot on its chest. It can be found in Thailand, China, Indonesia.
White-breasted bear
It does not differ in large size; the male reaches a length of up to 1.7 m, and the female is even smaller. The bear's body is covered with dark brown or black silky fur; this bear also has very large ears and a sharp muzzle.
A distinctive feature of this species is a white or slightly yellowish spot on the chest. These representatives of the bear family live in Afghanistan, Iran, and the countries of the Far East, as well as in the mountains of the Himalayas.
There are still a huge number of subspecies, which can be listed and described ad infinitum. Bright representatives of predators of this species can be called such bears as: Spectacled bear (Tremarctos ornatus), Sloth bear (Melursus ursinus), Bamboo bear commonly known as panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca), and many other.
Habitat
The habitat of these graceful representatives of the fauna is very diverse; they are present on all continents. They mostly prefer to settle in forests and lead a solitary lifestyle.
All types of bears are attached to their territory, where they hunt and stay for the winter, the only exception to this rule is the polar bear.
Menu for the predator
Bears eat absolutely everything as food, it can be berries and mushrooms, nuts and various roots, all kinds of meat and fish; ants, bee larvae and honey can serve as a delicacy for animals; there are also vegans among bears, these are pandas and koalas.
Among all the diversity of bears, the pure predators are again polar bears, whose diet includes only fish and meat.
How is a bear animal born?
Mating of bears occurs during the mating season (this is a different period for each species). Also, depending on the species they belong to, the gestation period of female bears varies and lasts from 180 to 250 days.
Childbirth occurs during wintering, when the animal hibernates. The female gives birth to 1-4 cubs, weighing from 450 grams to half a kilogram, they have neither teeth nor hair.
Breastfeeding lasts about a year, and cubs from the previous litter (parents) help the mother in raising the babies until they reach the age of two.
Bears reach sexual maturity after a minimum of three years.
In order for the bear to feel most comfortable, spacious enclosures are created and a habitat as close to natural as possible is created.
In addition to trees, stones and various wooden structures, such an enclosure must be equipped with a sufficiently large swimming pool.
The diet must be kept in accordance with the season and include all those elements that animals receive in their natural habitat.
Photo of a bear
Page 1 of 2
Types of bears
Bears are large and strong animals, with a dense body, a large head and wide powerful paws. In the bear family, 8 species are very similar to each other. Most of them are omnivores, many hibernate during the winter, and bears living in forests can climb trees. Bears are common in the Northern Hemisphere, from the North Pole to the jungles of Southeast Asia and in the forest zone of North America. There is one species in South America.
Brown bears were once the masters of all northern forests. But man cut down the forests. There is nowhere for the toptygins to hide in the miserable patches of forest, and now there are many bears only in the endless taiga and in nature reserves. The bears stay alone, each in their own area, where they do not allow neighbors. The bear is very strong: hungry, he will defeat an adult moose, and knock down a mighty wild boar. But bears don’t like to hunt, and when there are a lot of berries, nuts and lush greens in the forest, they hardly eat meat.
In Alaska (in North America) and Kamchatka, at the end of summer, when salmon go to the rivers to spawn, bears go fishing. Brown bears living in different places differ in size: taiga bears are larger than their counterparts from the southern forests. The largest brown bears - grizzlies - live in the north of North America. Bears come in “brunettes” and “blonds”: some have brown fur, others have light beige, and others have almost black fur.
For the winter, the bear goes to sleep in a den under a deep inversion, in a large pile of dead wood or in a cave. In the north, bears sleep from October to April; in warm regions, their winter sleep is shorter. All life processes of a sleeping bear slow down, and the temperature drops. The bear will survive on the accumulated fat until warmer weather arrives. But a bear's sleep is not as sound as that of small animals. Disturbed, he will wake up, leave the den and wander around the forest angrily. The connecting rod bear is the most terrible animal in the forest. Hunger pushes him to attack even people. In winter, cubs are born in the mother bear's den. All winter they suck the milk of their sleeping mother, and in the spring they come out into the light.
Himalayan bear
To the south of the brown bear, in the mountain forests of the Caucasus, Iran, Afghanistan, Primorye, Japan and China and in the Himalayan mountains, the Himalayan bear lives. Because of the color of its fur it is also called a black bear. And for the white spot on the chest in the shape of a crescent - a lunar or white-breasted bear.
Black bears do not hunt, but eat berries, fruits, nuts, acorns, grains, rhizomes and green parts of plants, feast on insects, and eat carrion. Black bears are smaller than brown bears, which allows them to climb trees better. Having reached the fork in the branches, the bear breaks off branches with berries or nuts, eats them and puts them under itself, making a comfortable bed. The tree on which the clubfoot dined remains almost without a crown. Bears hibernate in the hollows of old trees.
Baribal
In North America there lives the baribal bear - black with a light end of the muzzle. There are also chocolate and milky white baribals; even siblings can have different coat colors. Baribals, like black bears, love plant foods, climb trees and sleep in hollows in winter. Baribal is small and can become prey for a huge grizzly bear.
About 200 thousand years ago, some brown bears moved north from the taiga in search of a new habitat. They began to live in the cold treeless tundra and on the eternal ice of the Arctic. Harsh conditions changed their appearance. Bears with light fur survived among the snow. So, becoming lighter from generation to generation, the bears turned white. It is easier to retain heat in a large body, and they have become larger than their brown brothers. Their fur became thicker and warmer, and their paws became wider so as not to fall into the snow. Living near the ocean has made bears become excellent swimmers. In the ice, they forgot about plant food and turned into predators, feeding on seal meat, fish, seabirds, and carrion. This is how a new species was formed - the polar bear, the largest predatory animal in the world.
Polar bears are great wanderers; they wander throughout their lives on drifting ice, rarely coming onto land. Near the ocean they feel more confident - there is more of their usual food: seals and fish. In a mysterious way, bears accurately make their way in the darkness of the polar night, with flashes of the northern lights, and through snowstorms. Occasionally, these lonely tramps get together, communicate and play with each other, and then go their separate ways. Polar bears do not hibernate, but if there is a lack of food, they can sleep for a long time in a den made of snow. In places where snow drifts are deep, bears gather. They make dens in the snow, where, sheltered from the cold and wind, they give birth to cubs. Tiny white lumps will bask under their mother’s belly and suck her milk until they are strong enough to accompany their mother on long journeys. Polar bears are listed in the international Red Book.
Spectacled bear
The only bear found in the Southern Hemisphere, in the mountains of South America, is the spectacled bear. The rough, shaggy black fur of this bear is decorated with light spots on the chest and around the eyes, where a semblance of white glasses is formed - hence the name of the species.
The spectacled bear is the most mysterious of the bear family. A secretive nocturnal animal, it has been studied very little. It is known that it likes to feed on palm leaves, which it breaks off when climbing a tree, but eats leaves on the ground. Its “green table” is varied with fruits and roots, as well as young deer and guanaco llamas.
Bears - do they belong to the canine family??? and got the best answer
Answer from Elena Kazakova[guru]
To the bear family
Family BEARS (Ursidae)
Mammals / Carnivores / Ursids /
Mammalia / Carnivora / Ursidae /
BEAR family (Ursidae) Compared with other groups of the order of carnivores, representatives of the bear family are distinguished by the greatest uniformity of appearance, size, and many features of the internal structure. Bears are the largest of modern predatory animals. Some of them reach a length of 3 m and a weight of up to 725 and even 1000 kg. All animals of this family have a powerful body, many with high withers; paws are strong, with large claws, five-fingered, plantigrade; the tail is short, barely visible from the fur; the head is massive, with small eyes and ears (some are short, others, on the contrary, long). The wool is thick, uniformly colored black, brown or white, which does not change with the seasons. Some species have light markings on the chest or around the eyes. The skull of bears is large, with large crests and zygomatic arches. The canines are powerful, while the remaining teeth, due to the mixed diet, are not as large as one might expect, and the carnassial teeth are not developed. Typical species have 42 teeth, but some lack middle incisors or second and third premolars, reducing the total number of teeth to 40 or even 38 and 34.
Family taxonomy:
Subfamily Ursinae
Genus Helarctos
Helarctos malayanus – biruang (Malayan bear, sun bear)
Genus Melursus
Melursus ursinus – sloth bear (lazy bear)
Genus Tremarctos
Tremarctos ornatus – spectacled bear
Genus Ursus
Ursus americanus - American black bear
Ursus arctos – brown bear (brown bear, gray bear)
Ursus maritimus - polar bear
Ursus thibetanus – Himalayan bear (Asian black bear)
Subfamily Ailurinae
Genus Ailuropoda
Ailuropoda melanoleuca - panda (giant panda)
Genus Ailurus
Ailurus fulgens - small panda (the addition of this species and genus to the bear family causes great controversy).
The paws are short, stocky, with hairy soles, each containing five curved claws that cannot contract. The gait of a bear is flat-footed, with the soles of the feet completely touching the ground, a shuffling gait. The claws are controlled by powerful muscles, allowing bears to climb trees as well as dig and tear apart prey when hunting. Hearing and vision are less developed than their keen sense of smell. Bears, in general, live solitary lives, with exceptions during courtship and females with cubs. Litters are produced at intervals of one to four years with a short gestation period, although females are able to delay the implantation of a fertilized egg, extending the pregnancy from six to nine months. The litter size is one - four helpless cubs, weighing from 200 to 700 grams, usually born in a secluded den or cave. They remain with their mother for at least the first year, reaching sexual maturity at 2 - 5 years of age. Species that live in extremely cold regions spend most of the winter in a den, in a state called hibernation. During this period, they live off accumulated fat reserves without eliminating waste products.
Bears are widespread in Europe, Asia, North America, and are found in North Africa. One species lives in South America, isolated from the rest of the family. Most bears live in lowland or mountain forests of temperate and tropical latitudes, less often in open highlands. One species inhabits the Arctic, right down to the ice fields of the ocean. Bears have a long life expectancy. A polar bear can live in captivity for more than 30 years, a brown bear for over 45 years. Bears belong to valuable hunting animals. The decline in numbers required the introduction of restrictions on shooting and even protection. In some cases, bears can harm crops, beekeeping, and livestock. Bears are favorite objects for keeping and training in zoos.
The bear family (Ursidae) includes the largest of modern land predators. Most taxonomists believe that there are currently eight species of bears on Earth (they are in turn divided into many different subspecies), belonging to three different branches.
Bears are found on all continents except Africa, Australia and Antarctica. Three species of bears - spectacled, sloth and Malayan - live in the tropics, but the center of origin of the bear family is in the Northern Hemisphere. Long ago, the brown bear was also found in the Atlas Mountains in northwest Africa.
Bears are predominantly inhabitants of various types of forests and woodlands. One species, the polar bear, inhabits Arctic deserts and ice.
The most likely ancestors of modern bears were small predators that lived 25 million years ago (subfamily Agriotheriinae). The most ancient representative of this group, Ursavus elmensis, had a long tail and looked like a raccoon, but animals of a later period already resembled modern bears in both size and appearance. This group gave rise to three modern subfamilies. The giant panda was the first to separate from the common trunk, then the real bears (Ursus and its relatives) and spectacled bears (Tremarctos) separated.
Depending on the species, the body length of a predator can vary from 1 to 3 meters, the weight of individual polar and brown bears can reach up to 1000 kg. Males are much larger than females.
Bears have a heavy, awkward build. To support the large mass, their hind limbs are plantigrade (when walking, the entire sole is pressed to the ground). This also allows them to rise and stand freely on their hind legs. The structure of the front paws is different in different types of bears - from plantigrade to semidigital (the back of the foot is partially raised above the ground). All species have five toes on each paw, equipped with curved, non-retractable claws.
The skull of bears is massive, larger than that of other predators; the facial section is of medium length or shortened (especially in spectacled bears). Wide molars with flat chewing surfaces and rounded fangs are well adapted for crushing and grinding plant foods. Polar bears are exclusively carnivores, which is why their teeth are sharper. Depending on the species, bears have 40-42 teeth.
Bears' fur is thick and long; The color is usually dark, monochromatic, from brown to black (as an exception, white or contrasting two-color), sometimes with a light pattern on the head and chest. The tail is very short; ears are small, round; the lips are large and very mobile.
Polar bears and most brown bears of the New World do not climb trees, only European browns and all other species climb trees where they feed or sleep, but they still prefer to spend most of their time on the ground. For tree-climbing predators, bears have amazing features - their tails are too short and their facial whiskers are completely absent.
Most species of bears are non-specialized omnivores that feed on berries, nuts, shoots, rhizomes and leaves of plants, as well as meat, fish and insects. They have an excellent sense of smell, color vision and good memory, which allows them to remember places rich in food. It should be noted that bears do not digest plant food very well, since their gastrointestinal tract does not contain symbiotic microorganisms capable of decomposing fiber (these bacteria are found in the stomach of ruminants). Therefore, plant fibers and berries are excreted from the body almost undigested.
Photos and descriptions of modern bear species
Now let’s take a closer look at each of the eight species of bears.
The brown bear or common bear (Ursus arctos) is a typical representative of the bear family; found in Russia, Canada and Alaska. It prefers to settle in old forest areas, avoids wide open spaces, but can live at an altitude of up to 5000 meters above sea level, where there are no longer forests. Habitats are usually confined to freshwater bodies of water.
The brown bear is a large animal: its body length is 1.5-2.8 m, its height at the shoulders is up to 1.5 m. Males weigh from 60 to 800 kg. The weight of adult predators varies depending on the time of year and geographic habitat. The smallest is the pika from the mountains of Central Asia, and the largest is the Kodiak from Alaska and Kamchatka.
The photo shows a brown bear in all its glory.
Polar bear
The polar bear (Ursus maritimus) is the largest living member of the family. Its body length is 2-2.5 m, height at the withers is about 1.5 m, body weight is on average 350–450 kg, but there are also giants with a body weight of more than 500 kg.
Distributed on the Arctic coast of the Arctic Ocean, in Northern Canada.
The color of the fur is pure white, often yellowish due to contamination with fat, especially in summer. The fur is thick and warm, but the main warming function is played by a thick layer of subcutaneous fat.
The polar bear is the only member of the family that lives exclusively on a meat diet. He hunts young walruses, ringed seals, bearded seals, beluga whales and narwhals.
The photo shows a polar bear with cubs. The female usually gives birth to two cubs once every 3 years. You can read more about polar bears in this article.
Black bear
The black bear or baribal (Ursus americanus) is found in Canada, Northern Mexico, the USA, except the central part of the Great Plains. Lives in dense forests, bushes, and also in more open areas.
The size of the black bear varies depending on geographic location and season. In the northern and eastern regions of its range, the baribal is larger. Their body length varies from 1.2 to 1.9 meters, height at the withers - from 0.7 to 1 meter.
The photo shows a black bear on a tree. The ability to climb trees is vital for baribals - here they feed and hide in case of danger.
The Himalayan or white-breasted bear (Ursus thibetanus) is found from Iran to Southeast Asia, in Northern China, Primorye, Japan and Taiwan. Prefers to settle in forests of the temperate zone, subtropics and tropics.
Body length is 1.2-1.9 meters, weight of males is 60-200 kg, females are 40-140 kg. Because of its long fur, the Himalayan bear appears much larger than it actually is. The coat is black with a white V-shaped mark on the chest, another mark is on the chin; There is a collar of long wool around the neck. Apparently, the collar plays a role in protection from predators, because this species has always coexisted next to the tiger.
The white-breasted bear is an excellent tree climber and often builds something resembling a nest by bending branches to the trunk.
The Himalayan bear is a rare, vulnerable species. For 3 thousand years now, people have been hunting it for its paws and gall bladder (dried bile is used in traditional Chinese medicine).
The life expectancy of the Himalayan bear is up to 25 years in the wild and up to 37 years in captivity.
Malayan bear
The Malayan bear or biruang (Helarctos malayanus) is the smallest species of bear, sometimes called the “dog bear”. Due to their small size and friendly disposition, Buriangs are often kept in captivity as pets in Asia. Their body length does not exceed 140 cm, they weigh 27-65 kilograms. Malayan bears have short, black fur with a white, orange, or dark yellow crescent-shaped chest marking.
Malayan bears are found in Southeast Asia and Eastern India. Their life is closely connected with trees, where they often sleep in specially built nests. They feed mainly on various fruits, but if such food is not enough, they switch to insects.
Malayan bears are diurnal. They breed at any time of the year, and the duration of pregnancy varies greatly (from 3 to 8 months).
In captivity, the Malayan bear can live up to 33 years.
The sloth bear (Melursus ursinus) lives in India, Nepal, Bhutan, and Sri Lanka. Found mainly in lowland forests and steppes.
Body length – 1.4-1.9 meters, weight – 80-190 kg. The sponge's coat is long, thick, black with a white spot on the chest. Its claws are slightly curved, its palate is wide, and its lips are elongated (this is how it got its name). These devices help the sloth fish dig up and suck up termites, which make up a significant part of its diet. And it received its generic name (Melursus) for its special love for honey: it often climbs trees and is ready to endure bee stings just to feast on honeycombs. In addition to termites, other various insects and honey, the sloth fish eats berries with pleasure.
The sloth fish has long fur, which is quite surprising for a species living in the tropical forest. Apparently, it plays the same role as the loose clothing worn by people living in hot climates.
The sloth bear is a vulnerable species. In captivity, life expectancy is up to 34 years.
Spectacled bear (Tremarctos ornatus) Lives in the Andes from eastern Venezuela to the border of Bolivia and Argentina. It is found in a wide variety of biotypes: in mountain and tropical rainforests, alpine meadows and even in deserts.
Body length – 1.3-2.0 meters, weight – 100-200 kg. The coat is black with a creamy white bib-like marking on the chin, neck, and chest; There are white markings of various shapes around the eyes (hence the name bear).
The spectacled bear is a rather slender animal. Despite its relatively large size, it is agile and climbs trees well, where it gets food and builds resting nests from branches and twigs.
In different habitats, the diet of spectacled bears varies, but everywhere food of plant origin predominates (fruits, bamboo, cacti, etc.). They also enter fields of grain crops and corn, which greatly annoys farmers.
In captivity, the spectacled bear lives up to 39 years.
Big panda
The giant panda or bamboo bear (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) is found in the Sichuan, Shanxi and Gansu provinces of central and western China. Prefers cool, damp bamboo forests at an altitude of 1500-3400 meters above sea level.
The height of a giant panda at the withers is 70-80 cm, weight is 100-150 kg. The fur of the bamboo bear is black and white (the circles around the eyes, the area around the nose, the front and back legs and shoulders are black, everything else is white).
The diet consists primarily of bamboo; Occasionally, pandas eat bulbs of various plants, cereals, insects and rodents.
In the wild, a panda usually lives up to 20 years, in captivity - up to 30 years.
Today, enormous efforts have been made to preserve the giant panda, however, despite the most stringent ban, the animals still become victims of poachers. They also fall into traps set for other animals. Read more about the giant panda.
What types of bears are the most dangerous?
Bears are often spoken of as aggressive and dangerous animals. Indeed, their strength and size allow them to easily cope with a person, but the tendency of bears to attack people is greatly exaggerated.
Only polar bears, being true predators, are perhaps the only representatives of the family that actually sometimes perceive a person as prey, while tracking him down according to all the rules of hunting. Their attacks are caused by hunger, not fear. It is polar bears that are considered the most dangerous to humans. However, not many people live near polar bears, and people, knowing who they might have to deal with, always carry weapons with them.
Brown bears are in second place in terms of danger to humans, but their aggressiveness largely depends on their geographical habitat. Grizzlies in the center of the American continent, as well as bears living in Siberia, are truly dangerous. This is especially true for mother bears who protect their cubs, or animals who defend their prey. More aggressive individuals are found in the eastern regions of Europe. But in general, all bears, like other wild animals, try not to get in the way of humans and, if possible, avoid meeting them.
American black bears, especially those that live near humans, often frighten people, but very rarely cause them any harm.
Spectacled bears are very cautious and are absolutely not aggressive towards humans, but it happens that they attack livestock.
Among the Asian bears, only the giant panda is a true vegetarian, and naturally does not pose any danger to humans.
Malayan bears often frighten local residents. If they are accidentally disturbed, they usually rear up, let out a furious roar and make a sharp lunge towards the enemy, but they rarely actually attack.
Himalayan bears and sloth bears, which often have to fight off large cats, are more likely to attack than to flee. Many people believe that sloth bears are more dangerous than tigers.
Literature: Mammals: Complete illustrated encyclopedia /Translated from English/ Book. I. Carnivores, marine mammals, primates, tupayas, woolly wings. / Ed. D. MacDonald. – M: “Omega”, - 2007.
In contact with
From early childhood we become acquainted with such an animal as a bear. This is an image from a cartoon, a favorite plush toy, and even a painting by a famous artist. Did you know that there is a whole family of Bears, which includes many representatives?
Lovers of honey and at the same time dangerous predators, huge, but sometimes such funny animals - bears have always fascinated people with their power. Below are articles about various representatives of the Bear family. In them you will plunge into the world of wild bears and find a lot of interesting things about these curious, strong and ferocious animals.
The giant panda is a mountain bear of Tibet. Description and photo of a giant panda
The giant panda is a member of the Bear family. These funny bears will make you smile! In this article you will find a detailed description and photo of a giant panda, and you will be able to learn a lot of new and fascinating things about the life of this rare animal.
The polar bear is a large predator of the north. Description and photo of a polar bear
The polar bear (other names for the polar bear: polar bear, northern bear, oshkuy, nanuk, umka, sea bear) is one of the largest predators on the planet, which is a member of the Bear family. The big polar bear is the embodiment of strength. Since ancient times, the polar polar bear has become a respected character in folklore among the indigenous northern peoples. In this article you can see a photo and description of a polar bear, learn a lot of new and interesting things about this large and strong predator of the North.
The Himalayan bear is the owner of the moon sign. Description of the Himalayan bear and photo
The Himalayan bear (other names: white-breasted bear, black Himalayan bear, black Ussuri bear) is a predatory species of mammals from the Bear family. The Himalayan bear is often called the "moon bear" because of its white patch on its chest, which is shaped like a crescent moon. In this article you will find a description of the Himalayan bear and photos, you will learn a lot of interesting and new things about this unique animal.
