Sloth Bears
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Sloth Bear have long, shaggy hair, especially over its shoulders and
they diverged from the main lineage of bears about 6 million years a go.
Because of its ability to hang upside-down from branches, the first Europeans
to see this bear believed it was a type of sloth.
The Sloth Bear (Melursus ursinus) 
is an inhabitant of lowland tropical forests and grasslands of India and Sri Lanka. (picture right)
Its favorite food are primarily termites and other insects which it snorts and sucks out of termite hills on the ground with a vacuum-cleaner roar
that can be heard several hundred yards away.
Using its narrow tongue and long lower lip,
which it can extend far beyond its nose, the bear has no difficulty scooping up the tiny morsels.
The bear has special adaptations for feeding on termites.It has gap between its fron teeth which allows it to suck in the inscets, and the
top of its mouth is hollowed and tube-like.
The Sloth Bear eat also different insects such as ants and bees, in addition stand also fruits, blooms and honey on their food plan.
The Sloth Bear has a coarse, shagy ebony pelt, a white V-shaped mark on its and protruding lower lip.
Ater mating, there is a period of about 6 to 7 months before the young are born.
Generally they breed in june and july and cubs
are born from november to january.In south Sri Lanka there appears to be
less breedubg cinvergence and cubs may be born at any time of the year.
They reach length from 150 to 190 centimeters. Females reach a weight from 55 to 95 kilograms, while males are clearly heavier and between 80 and 140 kilograms weight.
Although Sloth Bears are rather shy animals, sometimes they are considered as aggressive.
The total population of the Sloth Bears becomes estimated on approximately 7000 to 10,000 animals, which list IUCN it as endangered (vulnerable).
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