American Black Bear

Facts

IUCN LEAST CONCERN (LC)

Facts about this animal

The black bear is approximately 1,5 to 1,8 m long and varies in weight from 78 to 225 kgs (males) and 45 to 135 kgs (females). They have small eyes, large, prominent ears, a long snout, a large body, and a short tail. The shaggy hair varies in color from white through chocolate brown, cinnamon brown, and blonde to black, but most black bears are indeed black or a darker shade of brown.

Did you know?
Contrary to popular belief, bears do not actually hibernate, they just go into dormancy. During this period all bears lose a great deal of weight, between 15-30% for a male and up to 40% for a female.

Factsheet
Class	MAMMALIA
Order	CARNIVORA
Suborder	FISSIPEDIA
Family	URSIDAE
Name (Scientific)	Ursus americanus
Name (English)	American Black Bear
Name (French)	Baribal, Ours noir américain
Name (German)	Schwarzbär
Name (Spanish)	Oso negro americano
CITES Status	Appendix II
CMS Status	Not listed

Photo Copyright by
Diane Krauss

Distribution

Distribution
Range	North America (Canada, Mexico, USA)
Habitat	Commonly found in different kind of forests. Also in swamps and scrublands. A subspecies of the American black bear even lives in the frozen tundra regions of Alaska and Canada.
Wild population	Canada: 327.200 -341.200; Estados Unidos: 186.881-206.751 (Wikipedia 2011)
Zoo population	296 reported to ISIS (2007)

In the Zoo

How this animal should be transported

For air transport, Container Note 72 of the IATA Live Animals Regulations should be followed.

Find this animal on ZooLex

Photo Copyright by
John Sullivan

Why do zoos keep this animal

The American black bear is the least threatened of all bear species. For zoos outside North America keeping this species has, therefore, a low priority. In the USA and Canada is shown as an important element of the native fauna and because of its cultural relevance for the native peoples.

All large bears are very popular with the public and of major educational interest.

Zoos within the species' range may also keep black bears for animal welfare reasons as they may take care of injured or orphaned individuals.

How this animal should be kept

Traditional bear enclosures are often quite inadequate, and transforming or replacing old enclosures requires a lot of space and major investments. Many zoos have therefore reduced the number of bear species kept, to provide more space and higher quality enclosures for just one or two species.

Existing enclosures of less than 100 m² should be given up as soon as possible. For two or three compatible non-breeding adults the enclosure should have a size of at least 300 m². For a breeding pair two enclosures of at least 300 m² each should be available.

Individual sleeping / cubbing dens of 6 m² are required.

The American black bear is an excellent tree climber, as are most of the bear species.The enclosure should therefore be furnished with ample climbing opportunities and with large hollow trees or other cavities to retreat. In larger enclosures, natural soil with grass cover is recommended. Older, small enclosures usually have a concrete floor which should at least in part be covered with a more suitable substrate such as bark chips.

American black bears love to bathe and swim. The enclosure therefore should have a pool of no less that 20 m² and a depth of 1 to 1.5 m.