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Ursus Americanus
Physical Characteristics
· Black, brown, blond, or cinnamon in color. Black with a light brown snout is the most common coloration in Yellowstone National Park.
· Average weight is Yellowstone is 100-300 pounds, with males usually larger than females.
· Height is 2.5-3 feet at the shoulder when standing on all fours and and 5 feet when standing upright.
· Rump is higher than front shoulders.
· Face profile is straight; muzzle is relatively long. Ears are long and prominent.
Behavior
· Usually less aggressive than grizzlies.
· Cubs:- weigh about one-half pound at birth-Stay with their mother up to 1.5 years.
· Black bears often make dens under roots of trees at low to middle elevations.
· Active mainly from dawn to dusk, but may be active any time of day or night.
Excellent tree-climbing ability is used-to escape predators-to feed on nuts and fruit in trees.
Distribution
· Black Bears once ranged widely–from the Atlantic to the Pacific oceans and from the tree line in the northern Arctic to northern Mexico.
· Currently exist in 75% of their former range, and are not listed as threatened as are grizzlies.
· Have shown more ability to live near people than have brown or polar bears; some live in forest habitats not as far from cities.
· Primarily forest creatures, black bears rarely travel far from the shelter of trees.
· Black bears frequent areas of mixed woodland and small meadows in the sub-alpine zone.
· Black bears are returning to many forested areas near major cities.
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