Fun Facts About Bears

Bears are a familiar animal in the Americas, Europe and Asia. These species are the polar bear, brown bear, American black bear, Asiatic black bear, the spectacled bear, sun bear, sloth bear and giant panda bear.

Most bears have large, stocky bodies with short legs and a long snout. A bear’s fur can vary from the bright white of the polar bear to the reddish-copper hue of the brown bear. All bears have a heavy build but they are very efficient at climbing and swimming.

Bears are classified as omnivorous animals and have a varied diet. Most species of bears in the northern hemisphere go through a type of hibernation in winter.  Their body temperatures drop slightly and heart rate slows.  During this time, bears don’t wake—never eating, drinking or defecating. They live off the fat they accumulate eating during the warmer seasons.

Other facts about Bears:-

Bears can stand on their hind feet similar to a human and sit up straight with remarkable balance.
Bears have an incredible sense of smell, even better than most dogs.
The sun bear, an endangered species, is the smallest of the bears at 3.5 to 4.5 feet long. They are named after a crescent shaped marking on their black fur that looks like the rising sun.
The most widely distributed bear is the brown bear. They are very large, typically weighing 700 pounds.
While most bears are omnivorous, the polar bear feeds mainly on fish and meat, while the giant panda bear nearly exclusively eats bamboo.
The giant panda has a big appetite spending 12 hours every day eating bamboo.
Brown bear mothers can give birth while they are hibernating. Baby bears are born hairless, toothless and blind.
Some prehistoric cultures revered the animal as the spirit of their ancestors. Modern day bears have a prominent place in many children’s books and as teddy bears.
Bear are often hunted for their meat and fur. Six of the eight bear species are endangered or vulnerable.