Spectacled Bear

Spectacled bears are the largest carnivores in South America, though meat only accounts for 5 percent of their diet. Despite their bulk, they can climb trees with ease. It is easy to understand how the spectacled bear got its name: The whitish rings round its eyes are very distinctive. It is the largest member of the Carnivora in South America and is a direct descendant of the bulldog bear, which 10,000 years ago was the largest predator in the Americas. The spectacled bear is a powerful animal, and there are records of individuals killing and eating cattle. However, they feed mainly on fruit and other vegetable materials. Meat rarely amounts to more than 5 percent of the diet and is mostly in the form of insects and carrion.

Spectacled bears live in the cloud forest of the Andean mountains. Dense vegetation thrives in the damp atmosphere. Much of the interior remains unexplored, and relatively little is known about the lives of the spectacled bears. The bears appear to spend most of their time in the trees, where they clamber around up to 50 feet (15 m) above the ground, looking for fruit. They are especially partial to bromeliads, young palm fronds and figs but will seek out any sweet, energy-rich food. Spectacled bears do not hibernate because they do not have to contend with seasonal changes in food availability. Their diet may change as different plants come into season, but at no time is there any shortage, so the bears remain active all year. Spectacled bears mate between April and June, and pregnancies last between five and eight months.

It is likely that the variation occurs because, once mated, female spectacled bears can put their pregnancy on hold: a strategy known as delayed implantation. Only when conditions seem right for the pregnancy to proceed successfully will the embryo be implanted and continue to develop. (This is speculation, but a similar process happens in polar and grizzly bears, so it is likely to occur in spectacled bears too.) Cubs are born between November and February, about six weeks before the peak fruiting period of local plants. There is plenty of food available just when the new family needs it most. The newborn cubs are blind and very small, weighing no more than 18 ounces (500 g) each. After a month they are ready to begin exploring with their mother. She spends six to eight months teaching them to fend for themselves, after which they will be on their own.

Shrinking Populations

The spectacled bear faces many problems. Its habitat is shrinking at a rapid rate as the forests are cleared for timber production and agriculture. This brings the bears into contact with human activities, reducing survival. Although the bear is legally protected, there is a thriving trade in body parts, especially skins, meat, and fat. The paws are valued too, being thought to have medicinal properties. Hunting and international trade in spectacled bears is banned, but legislation is difficult to enforce. In Peru the wild bear population is so small that inbreeding is becoming a problem: Scientists have already noted a decrease in the size of bears and the size of their litters.

Spectacled bear – Tremarctos ornatus

• Family: Ursidae
• World population: Up to 2,000
• Distribution: Andean mountains in northern Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela
• Habitat: Cloud forests on lower Andean slopes
• Diet: Mostly plant material, including fruit, sugarcane, and corn; some small mammals, birds, and carrion
• Breeding: One or 2 young (occasionally 3 in captivity) born November-February. Life span may exceed 25 years
• Size: Length: 4.2-6.2 ft (1.3-1.9 m); height at shoulder on all fours: 30 in (76 cm); females smaller than males. Weight: 175-385 lb (80-175 kg)
• Form: A short-legged, brownish-black, largely arboreal bear with variable pale markings on the face and chest
• Related endangered species: Sloth bear (Melursus ursinus); polar bear (Ursus maritimus); Asiatic black bear (U. thibetanus)

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