Spectacled bears

Spectacled Bears

Spectacled bear are the second largest land mammals in South America. They have medium size by bear standards but only tapir is larger. So called bear with eyeglasses (in Spanish) obtain its name because of light colored marking surrounding the eyes.

The Spectacled Bear (Tremarctos ornatus) is the sole survivor of subfamily of bears that once ranged across North and South America during the last Ice Age. Today it is found only in the Andes from Venezuela to Chile. Some reports have also suggested its presence in eastern Panama and northern Argentina.

Spectacled Bears can occupy a wide variety of habitats, but are most common presently in heavy forest, perheps because of displacement and persecution of by humans. Not much is known about the bears behaviour in the wild and therefore their status and distribution is uncertain in many areas.

It is not hibernating an animal with the diet almost exclusively vegetarian, near to the giant panda.
Its favourite food is fruit but spectacled bear also eats bromeliads, stripping off the tough outer leaves to get at the soft base and hears.

Spectacled Bear are considered as rather shy animals. The rings of yellowish fur around its eyes account for the spectacled bears name. These golden markings vary greatly fron one bear to another and sometimes extend from the cheeks to the chest. Their predators include mountain lions and jaguars.

Attacks on humans are very rare, the cause are usually an approximation to a female with young animals but because the bears sometimes raid crops and attack livestock some local people consider them a pest and will ofter shoot them on sight. Another practices that may impact specatcled bears is the icnrease in cultivation of coca for cocaine.

Details of reproductive behaviour in the wild are sparse. Mating takes place from April to June and litters are born between November and February. In captive animals pregnancy has been found to last for up to 9 months and seems to involve a period of delayed implantation. Between 1 and 3 cubs are born, each weighing 300 - 360g.

Captive animals usually live to 20 or 25 years of age althought a single animal at Buenos Aires Zoo reached an age of 36 years.
The males can weigh up to 155 kg, the females up to 80 kg. It is a superb climber and night and twilight animal. Today are approximately 2000 individuals and this species is the species which IUCN lists it as endangered (vulnerable).

• Name: The Spectacled Bear (Tremarctos ornatus)
• Kingdom: Animalia
• Phylum: Chordata
• Subphylum: Vertebrata
• Class: Mammalia
• Subclass: Theria
• Order: Carnivora
• Family: Ursidae
• Length of life: About 20 -25 years in zoos. In the wild unknown
• Size: 150 to 180 cm
• Weight: 100 to 155 kg males
  64 to 82 kg females
• Habitat: Rainforest, cloud forest, dry forest, steppes and coastal scrub desert
• Diet: Birds, rabbits, mice, fruit, grasses, berries, bromeliads
• Gestation: 6 to 9 months
• Cubs: 1 to 3 cubs
• SubFamily: Ursinae
• Genus: Tremarctos
• Distribution: South America: Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and Columbia