Sun bear

Sun bear

The Sun Bear is the smallest bear in the world. Adults are about 120 – 150 centimeters tall, have a 5 cm tail and usually weigh less than 65 kilograms. It calls the tropical Southeast Asian states such as Laos, Cambodia and Malaysia home. Because it lives in tropical areas, it has especially short hair. Dark black or brown-black fur covers its body, except on the chest where there is a pale orange-yellow marking in the shape of a horseshoe. Similar colored fur can be found around the muzzle and the eyes. This distinct marking gives the Sun Bear its name.

Their paws are large with naked soles, with long curved sickle-shaped pointed claws which are good for climbing trees and relatively light in weight. Its inward-turned feet make the bear’s walk pigeon-toed, but it is an excellent climber. It has small, round ears and a stout snout. Despite its small size, the Sun Bear possesses a very long, slender tongue, ranging from 8 to 10 inches in length. The bear uses it to extract honey from beehives.

The diet of the Sun Bear varies widely and includes small vertebrates such as lizards, birds, and other mammals, in addition to fruits, eggs, termites, the young tips of palm trees, nests of wild bees, berries, sprouts, insects, roots, cocoa, and coconuts. Its powerful jaws can crack open nuts. Much of the Sun Bear’s food must be detected using its keen sense of small, as its sight is poor. This means Sun Bears are omnivores.

The Sun Bear does not hibernate, and, as a result, it can reproduce year-round. It is not uncommon for the mother bear to give birth to two cubs at a time weighing approximately 325grams. The gestation period is about 96 days, but suckling can continue for about 18 months. They probably stay with their mother until they are fully grown. The offspring reach sexual maturity after 3-4 years and live up to 28 years in captivity.

Being a primarily nocturnal creature, the Sun Bear tends to rest during the day on lower limbs not far above the ground. Adult Sun Bears have almost no predators except humans. The bear’s loose skin on its neck allows it to wriggle its body inside its skin, far enough to turn around and bite its attacker when grabbed there. The recent decline in the Sun Bear population can be largely attributed to the hunting of “nuisance bears” that destroy crops and poaching driven by the market for their fur and use their bile in Chinese medicine. Sometimes, Sun Bears are captured or bred to be domestic pets, a role for which they are considered desirable due to their relatively inoffensive nature and small size compared to other bears. The ICUN reclassified the Sun Bear to vulnerable status in 2007.

Sun bear belongs to the following groups:

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