8 Types Of Bears Compared - Identification Guide

There are three species of bear native to North America. Most numerous North American bears. The commonest is the American black bear, followed by the brown bear and then the polar bear. Discovered all through Canada, the USA, and Mexico. Weighs 200 to 600 pounds. Could be darkish or mild brown (cinnamon), typically even white. Not always black in color. 900,000 and never threatened. 📍Location: The American black bear will be found all through Canada, the USA, and Mexico. However, some subspecies such as the Louisiana black bear are protected below the U.S. 📏 Size: Adults weigh 200 to 600 pounds and are 5 to six ft in length. 👀 Features: Most black bears are black, however their fur can range from darkish brown to lighter brown (cinnamon) and even white on rare occasions. They have pointed ears and a straight face. Of all of the bear species black bears are a few of the best at climbing bushes. Their relatively smaller measurement and shorter claws make them fast and nimble to climb timber for protection, meals, and even hibernation. The vast majority of their weight-reduction plan is vegetarian consisting of berries, plant shoots, and nuts. 🌱 Diet: Their diversified weight loss plan provides them the ability to dwell in a big vary of habitats. They also eat insects, fish, and carrion. 😱 Dangerous? They're the most probably bear to be encountered within the backcountry. And sure, they love honey. The grizzly and Kodiak are the two subspecies of brown bears in North America. Most widespread bear species are found within the northern Rocky Mountains, Alaska, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Brown bears are essentially the most widespread of all bear species, found in the northern Rocky Mountains, Alaska, Asia, Europe, and the Center East. Grizzlies are accountable for nearly all bear assaults in North America, with forty six per 12 months. Although their conservation status is “least concern”, their spread-out nature and reduced habitat make most of the small remaining pockets fragile. The 200,000 brown bears of the world occupy a wide number of habitats spanning deserts, forests, and mountains. All brown bears share a large construct, a dish-shaped face, and a shoulder hump. Their hair is lighter at the tips, which led to the name of essentially the most well-known subspecies, grizzly. Brown bears forage on roots, berries, insects, and fish, and some even hunt young mammals reminiscent of elk and moose. Their shade varies from light blonde to dark brown. The two subspecies in North America are the grizzly and Kodiak. 📍Location: Grizzly bears are discovered within the northern USA, Canada, and Alaska. 📏 Size: Adults weigh four hundred to 790 pounds, are 6.5 feet lengthy, and have a shoulder peak of 3.Three toes. 🌱 Diet: Grizzlies eat berries, nuts, salmon and have been recognized to prey on large mammals. Coastal grizzlies are usually larger than those discovered in the Rocky Mountains as a consequence of a richer food plan. Annually there are 46 assaults and 6 deaths. 😱 Harmful? Identified for his or her aggressive behavior, grizzlies are accountable for the most bear attacks in North America. 📍Location: Kodiak bears are only discovered on the Kodiak Islands, an archipelago in southwestern Alaska. 📏 Dimension: Kodiak bears are virtually as large as polar bears, weighing 600 to 1,four hundred pounds, 8 feet long, and four toes tall on the shoulder. 🌱 Weight-reduction plan: Their weight loss plan is just like mainland grizzly bears. However, due to extra plentiful meals sources, the islands can support a denser bear inhabitants. Geographic isolation from the mainland allowed the 3,500 Kodiak bears to grow to be their very own subspecies. This has led to a extra advanced social construction which leads to less battle between bears. 😱 Harmful? Like grizzlies, Kodiak bears can be aggressive. As a result of their isolation, there is only one attack on people every other year. Largest species of bear on the earth weighing between 800 and 1,300 pounds. Food regimen is usually made up of meat, usually from seals. 📍Location: Polar bears are the most important bears and largest land carnivores on the planet. Fur seems white however is actually clear. The world’s 20,000 to 30,000 polar bears vary within the snow-coated arctic ice in Alaska, Canada, Russia, and Norway. 📏 Size: Grownup polar bears are 800 to 1,300 pounds and could be 7 to 10 toes tall. They are a threatened species on account of lack of habitat from climate change. Regardless of their huge size polar bears may be fast, maintaining a 6 mph pace within the water. 👀 Features: Compared to different bears, polar bears have a slimmer physique, narrow head, longer neck, and paddle-like paws. For context, swimmer Michael Phelps received Olympic gold medals with a 4.7 mph tempo! 🌱 Food plan: Their eating regimen consists mostly of animals, particularly seals which they'll scent from a mile away. Though they appear white, their fur is actually clear and their skin is black. 😱 Harmful? Polar bears may be extremely harmful. They see people as potential prey. Attacks are uncommon due to the distant nature of their habitat. Identified for its cream shade chest blazes. At 300 pounds one of the smaller bears. Straightforward to tame and sometimes frequent in circuses. 📍Location: The Asian black bear is found in forests and shrublands across Asia from Iran to Japan. The population is estimated at 40,000 to 50,000 and is taken into account vulnerable. 📏 Size: One of the smaller species, adults weigh around 300 pounds and stand 47 to seventy five inches tall. 🌱 Weight loss plan: Relying on the season it generally feeds on small mammals, birds, fish, mollusks and carcasses or grasses, fruits, berries, seeds, insects, and honey. Assaults on humans are increasing as individuals encroach on their habitat. 😱 Harmful? They are one in all the simplest bears to tame (and due to this fact widespread in circuses), however Asian black bears are extra aggressive than their North American counterparts. Found solely in China. 99% of its eating regimen is bamboo. In actual fact, the second particular person in history to receive a facial transplant was mauled by an Asian black bear while protecting his sheep. Recognized for its iconic white face, eye patches, and striped physique. 📍Location: Pandas are found solely in China. Only 1,500 to 2,000 remain in the wild and they are considered a weak species. 📏 Measurement: Pandas weigh around 300 pounds and might be over 4 ft tall, an impressive feat contemplating they weigh only about 3.5 ounces at delivery. It additionally has a detailed cousin, the Qinling panda which has the identical pattern in light brown and white. 🌱 Weight-reduction plan: Not like other bears the panda’s eating regimen is homogeneous; 99% of what they eat is bamboo. 👀 Options: The giant panda is iconic for its white face, black eye patches, and striped physique. All that fibrous bamboo keeps them common: they poop over 40 occasions a day! 😱 Harmful? Attacks are rare however harmful, on condition that pandas have one among the best chunk forces of any carnivore. Smallest Bear weighing fifty five to 143 pounds. Present in South East Asia. 8 to 10-inch long tongue for slurping up insects and honey. 📍Location: The Solar bear is found within the forest and shrubland of South East Asia and India. It is the least studied bear and. Its population is uncertain however thought-about susceptible and on the decline resulting from lack of habitat and poaching. Sun bears are hunted for his or her gallbladders and different body elements used in traditional medicines. 📏 Measurement: They stand only 39 to 55 inches and weigh fifty five to 143 pounds making them the smallest bear. 👀 Features: Solar bears have strongly curved claws, small rounded ears, and a short snout. They're named for their pale, horseshoe-formed chest patch that looks like a rising solar. They also eat seeds, fruit, birds, and deer. 🌱 Food plan: Solar bears tear apart timber and nests to eat ants, bees, beetles, termites, and honey. Their love of honey has given them the nickname “honey bears.” In actual fact, they've an incredibly lengthy tongue (8-10 inches) for slurping up insects and honey. Native to South Asia. 😱 Harmful? Due to its shy nature, assaults are rare. Long, shaggy fur and mane gave them the name sloth bear. Sloth bears are feared by rhinos and elephants. 📍Location: The Sloth bear is discovered in the low elevation savanna and shrubland of India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. With a declining inhabitants of lower than 20,000, they're thought of susceptible. 📏 Dimension: They're 55 to seventy five inches long and weigh 200 to 300 pounds. 👀 Options: With their long shaggy fur and mane, they're straightforward to tell other than different Asiatic bears. In actuality, they're very fast and may out-gallop humans. European explorers mistook them for sloths after seeing them hanging the other way up from trees. They're noisy, messy eaters tearing up termite mounds with their massive curved claws. 🌱 Food regimen: Their weight loss plan consists of termites, ants, and fruit. 😱 Harmful? They are one of the crucial aggressive bears, with probably the most attacks on humans, principally attributable to surprise encounters. They blow the mud around with massive puffs and suck the ants up so loudly they can be heard 600 ft away. Sloth bears stand their ground if threatened and do not combine well with rhinos and elephants, often charging at each other when in proximity. Solely South American bear. World’s final brief-faced bear. The identify “spectacled” comes from the lighter markings around their eyes that seem like glasses. This weak species of 13,000 to 18,000 remaining bears are found in the cloud forests of the Andes from Argentina to Ecuador. 📏 Measurement: They're mid-sized, weighing 175 to 275 pounds, and standing forty seven to 79 inches tall. 📍Location: The spectacled bear is the world’s last brief-confronted bear and the only bear native to South America. 👀 Features: The identify “spectacled” comes from the lighter markings round their eyes that generally appear like glasses. They spend most of their time in bushes the place they construct nest platforms, sleep and jealously guard valuable fruit and carcasses. 🌱 Diet: Spectacled bears are principally herbivores with a diet consisting of largely cactus, bromeliad, palm hearts, and fruit, however they may opportunistically eat mammals like rabbits and tapirs. 😱 Dangerous? Residing in distant mountains, these shy bears would be the least harmful of all bear species. Their bodies are smaller than polar bears however larger than grizzlies. The Grolar bear (aka Pizzly) is a uncommon hybrid of a polar bear and a grizzly bear that occurs in both nature and captivity. Grolar bear behavior is closer to the polar bear. They function the long necks of polar bears and the shoulder humps of grizzlies. In captivity, they have been documented stomping toys, just like how polar bears break ice. Black-brown hybrid bears have been bred in captivity, notably on the London Zoo in 1859, however haven't been confirmed within the wild. In 1986, a suspected grizzly-brown hybrid was shot but DNA assessments had been unable to find out what kind of bear it was. Adorable koalas should not bears, they are burly marsupials. Water bears aren’t bears both, they're indestructible, microscopic animals that can survive in house. Most bear attacks happen when a bear is startled or defending their cubs. Pink pandas? They’re in their very own household which might be nearer cousins with skunks and raccoons than bears. 1. BEWARE OF YOUR SURROUNDINGS. Watch for bear scat and bear tracks that may point out a bear is nearby, very very big teddy bear in which case you need to be additional vigilant. Here are a number of suggestions you need to use to prevent bear encounters and keep you and your hiking buddies protected. 2. MAKE NOISE. This helps bears know you are here so they do not by accident startle them. Consider attaching a bear bell to your pack. 3. KEEP YOUR DISTANCE. While you'll have great intentions, a bear is prone to feel threatened when it sees you approaching and defend itself. 3. Secure YOUR SCENTED Objects (AT CAMP). If you see a bear, do not attempt to method or feed it. This includes meals, but additionally your toiletries, for example. Whichever technique you choose, ensure it's at the least 200 toes away out of your tent so you don't attract bears to your campsite. 4. Stay CALM. When you meet a bear, don't run. Attempt to make your self look as huge as attainable, waving your arms above your head. You may as well prolong a jacket above your head to make yourself look larger. Lock these things in a bear canister or use a bear bag to grasp them up in a tree. Don't scream or try to scare the bear. 5. USE BEAR SPRAY (AS A final RESORT). Speak to it calmly and slowly back away. Full instruction on how to make use of bear spray right here. If the bear is dangerously close (30 feet) or is charging at you, pull out your bear spray and use it in 1-2 second bursts, aiming slightly downward. 6. Battle Back. If all else fails and a bear attacks you, do not play dead. Which bear is the most important? Averaging 900-1500 lbs, 8.Zero to 8.4 toes lengthy, and 4.0 to 5.25 ft tall, the biggest bear by both size and weight is the polar bear. The largest ever recorded was 2,200 lbs. Fight back with all of your energy and hope that it will back down. Which bear is essentially the most dangerous? All bears are harmful if provoked. Globally, the Asian black bear is thought for essentially the most attacks. When in bear nation, it’s at all times sensible to hold bear spray. It’s effectively deserved, particularly when cubs are round. Annually there are roughly 46 grizzly attacks, 6 leading to death. In North America, grizzly bears have probably the most fearsome repute. Which bear is the strongest? Whereas you’re most more likely to see an American black bear, on average there is just one attack per yr. In terms of uncooked bite energy, measured in Newtons, the polar bear's chew reigns supreme. All bears are sturdy and not to be messed with. When utilizing the bite power quotient (chew power relative to size), the solar bear packs probably the most punch. Originally named “Hotfoot Teddy”, Smokey Bear was a black bear cub found within the spring of 1950 after a wildfire in New Mexico. He had climbed a tree to flee the hearth however sustained burns on his paws and hind legs. Quickly after he turned an icon and to this day is the star of the longest-operating public service announcement campaign. Yogi Bear is an animated bear identified for his love of “pic-a-nic” baskets. More importantly Yogi Bear has impressed numerous thru-hikers to attempt to master the artwork of “yogi-ing”, the act of not fairly begging but receiving favors from strangers. Baloo s a sloth bear, although he has some characteristics of the Asian black bear. He's an easygoing, friendly bear who lives a accountability-free way of life. He additionally is likely to be the primary bear to obtain his pilot’s license. Before he was the storybook teddy bear, Winnie the Pooh was a black bear from Canada which the author’s son often would go to on the London Zoo. Winnie is short for “Winnipeg,” the town in Canada close to the place he was from. Chris additionally wrote The best way to Hike the Appalachian Path. Equal parts backpacking food and ultralight gear. After through-hiking the Appalachian Trail, Chris Cage created Greenbelly to provide fast, filling and balanced meals to backpackers. Get epic tips, guides and how-to's in your inbox each two weeks.