Article
Article
Bear
Article By:
Linzey, Donald W. Wytheville Community College, Wytheville, Virginia.
Last reviewed:October 2020
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.076000
Any member of the mammalian family Ursidae, which contains the largest terrestrial carnivores. The bear family Ursidae comprises a number of carnivorous mammalian species. There are eight extant species of bears in three subfamilies: Ursinae [American black (Fig. 1), Asiatic black, brown, polar, Malayan sun, and sloth bears]; Tremarctinae (Andean or spectacled bear); and Ailuropodinae (giant panda). Bears currently inhabit North America, South America, Europe, and Asia. Habitats range from polar ice floes to tropical forests. Bears are absent from Australia, Africa, and Antarctica. See also: Mammalia; Zoogeography
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