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Where do north american black bears live- Where do north american black bears live
Where do north american black bears live
Some bears have a white patch on their chests. They have a short, inconspicuous tail, longish ears, a relatively straight profile from nose to forehead, and small, dark eyes.
There are several ways to tell a black bear from a grizzly bear. Black bears and grizzly bears can both have a wide variety of colors and sizes, but most commonly in areas where both species occur, black bears are smaller and darker than grizzly bears. Black bears have longer and less rounded ears and a more straight profile from forehead to nose compared to grizzly bears.
Grizzly bears have larger shoulder humps and a more dished-in facial profile and much longer front claws that are evident in the tracks. Black bears in some areas where food is scarce are much smaller than in other areas where food is abundant. Typically adults are three feet tall at the shoulder, and their length from nose to tail is about 75 inches. All bears, including black bears, are sexually dimorphic—meaning adult males are much larger than adult females.
A large male black bear can exceed pounds in weight, while females seldom exceed pounds. The American black bear's range covers most of the North American continent.
They are found in Alaska, much of Canada and the contiguous United States, and extend as far south as northern Mexico. Because of their versatile diet, black bears can live in a variety of habitat types. They inhabit both coniferous and deciduous forests, as well as open alpine habitats. They typically don't occur on the Great Plains or other wide-open areas, except along river courses where there is riparian vegetation and trees.
They can live just about anywhere they can find food, but largely occur where there are trees. American black bears are omnivorous, meaning they will eat a variety of things, including both plants and meat. Their diet includes roots, berries, meat, fish, insects, larvae, grass, and other succulent plants.
They are able to kill adult deer and other hoofed wildlife but most commonly are only able to kill deer, elk, moose , and other hoofed animals when the prey are very young. They are able to kill livestock, especially sheep. Bears are very attracted to human garbage, livestock food or pet food, or other human-associated foods like fruit trees. Bears using these human-associated foods can quickly become habituated to them and this commonly results in the bears being killed as nuisances.
This is true for bee hives as well, as bears are very attracted to honey. Black bears are typically solitary creatures, except for family a female with cubs groups and during mating season, which peaks in May and June.
Delayed implantation allows the female to not waste fat reserves and energy in sustaining a pregnancy that would have little chance of success because her condition is too poor. Females give birth to cubs every other year if food sources are sufficiently plentiful. In years when food supplies are scarce, a female may skip an additional year or two between litters. The cubs are born in the mother's winter den, and will den with her again the following winter.
The following spring, when the cubs are one and a half years old, the cubs and female will separate and the female will breed again. A black bear litter can have one to five cubs, but most commonly litters contain two cubs. Black bears can live up to 30 years in the wild, but most die before they are in their early 20s. The American black bear is not currently a species of conservation concern and even the formerly listed black bear of Florida and Louisiana is now increasing.
Habitats in western Texas, from which black bears were extirpated, are now being recolonized. Conservation efforts for black bears have been effective and, in most areas, black bears are increasing and can sustain managed sport hunting.
The average male black bear can range from about one hundred fifty pounds up to about five hundred fifty pounds. Another characteristic is that black bears generally have larger ears than a grizzly. Grizzly Bear: This image shows the distinctive hump that is located on a grizzly bear's back between the front shoulder blades. The grizzly bear and brown bear are members of the same species of bear.
Generally they are called grizzly bear when they are inland. In coastal regions of Alaska and Canada they are generally referred to as brown bear. These bears are much more aggressive than a black bear. While the majority of their living range is Alaska and Northwestern Canada, they are also found in small areas of the lower 48 states, including: Northwestern Montana, Yellowstone National Park, Northern Utah and a very small section of Northwestern Washington.
Many people visit Yellowstone National Park just to get a glimpse of these magnificent beasts. The coastal brown bears are generally larger than their inland grizzly bear counterpart. This is a result of the greater abundance of protein-rich food along the coast.
While grizzlies eat meat and fish, their main diet consists of berries and plants. The best identifier for a grizzly bear is the large hump on their shoulders that is best seen while they are walking.
Most grizzlies are a medium brown color, but they can range from a very dark brown almost black to a light honey brown color. Polar Bears: A momma polar bear with two cubs following close behind. Polar bears are the largest of the three bears found in North America. They range from about seven hundred pounds up to about fifteen hundred pounds.
Not only are they the largest bear found in North America, they are also the most dangerous to humans. They are more dangerous because they don't have much contact with humans - so they may see us as prey when they are hungry.
Polar bears are easily identified by their white fur. They also have the hump on their shoulders like that of grizzly bear. Since plants and berries are not readily available where they live, they are considered more carnivorous than other bears. For most polar bears, seals are the main part of their diet.
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