Sun Bears

Diet

Sun bears feed on fruit, small rodents, lizards, birds, ants, termites, earthworms and insects..

Habits

Sun bears often climb trees to make day nests. This may help keep them safe from the many predators within the forest.

They also climb trees to get honey from the hives of wild bees!

Sun bears do not hibernate because food is available all year long.

Location (where in the world they are found)

Sun Bears are found in many countries on southeast Asian continent. These include: Malaysia, Indonesia, India, Bangladesh, Burma, Thailand, Laos, and Kampuchea.

Home (habitat where you find the bear)

Sun bears inhabit the lowland forests.

Physical Description (what they look like)

Sun bears have a solid, sleek body. They have short, dense, black fur. They have a short tail, and small rounded ears. They have short bowed legs and sharp curved claws. Sun bears have no hair on the bottoms of their feet. This helps them in get a better grip when they climb trees. Most bears have a large yellow spot on their chest.

Sun bears stand 2 1/4 feet tall, and are 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 feet long. They weigh 60 to 143 pounds. Female sun bears are smaller than males.

Population (the number of bears that are alive)

The exact number of sun bears still is not known. We do know, however, that the number of sun bears is steadily declining due to habitat loss and poaching. There is a fear that the sun bear may become extinct before anything is known about it. It is on the endangered species list.

Fun Facts

• It is the smallest of the eight bear species.
• The Sun Bear is also called the honey bear.
• Cubs are born blind, hairless and very tiny.