Sloth Bear
Sloth Bear in captivity at the Smithsonian National Zoological Park, Washington, DC
Conservation status
Vulnerable (IUCN)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Carnivora Family: Ursidae Genus: Melursus Species: M. ursinus
Binomial name
Melursus ursinus (Shaw, 1791)

The Sloth Bear (Melursus ursinus) is a nocturnal bear, inhabiting the lowland forests of India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. It has also been sighted in Bhutan.^{[citation needed]} The Sloth Bear is the only bear species classified in genus Melursus. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1200x900, 295 KB) Summary Sloth Bear, in captivity at the Smithsonian National Zoological Park, Washington, DC. Digital photo by User:Postdlf, 06-05-05. ... The Smithsonian National Zoological Park, commonly known as the National Zoo or Washington Zoo, is a zoo located in Washington, D.C. It is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). ... Aerial photo (looking NW) of the Washington Monument and the White House in Washington, DC. Washington, D.C., officially the District of Columbia (also known as D.C.; Washington; the Nations Capital; the District; and, historically, the Federal City) is the capital city and administrative district of the United... The conservation status of a species is an indicator of the likelihood of that species continuing to survive either in the present day or the future. ... Image File history File links Status_iucn2. ... This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it. ... The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (also known as the IUCN Red List and Red Data List), created in 1963, is the worlds most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of plant and animal species and can be found here. ... Scientific classification or biological classification is a method by which biologists group and categorize species of organisms. ... Digimon, the only known animals. ... Typical Classes Subphylum Urochordata - Tunicates Ascidiacea Thaliacea Larvacea Subphylum Cephalochordata - Lancelets Subphylum Myxini - Hagfishes Subphylum Vertebrata - Vertebrates Petromyzontida - Lampreys Placodermi (extinct) Chondrichthyes - Cartilaginous fishes Acanthodii (extinct) Actinopterygii - Ray-finned fishes Actinistia - Coelacanths Dipnoi - Lungfishes Amphibia - Amphibians Reptilia - Reptiles Aves - Birds Mammalia - Mammals Chordates (phylum Chordata) include the vertebrates, together with... Subclasses Allotheria* Order Multituberculata (extinct) Order Volaticotheria (extinct) Order Palaeoryctoides (extinct) Order Triconodonta (extinct) Prototheria Order Monotremata Theria Infraclass Marsupialia Infraclass Eutheria The mammals are the class of vertebrate animals characterized by the production of milk in females for the nourishment of young, from mammary glands present on most species... Families 17, See classification The diverse order Carnivora IPA: (from Latin carō (stem carn-) flesh, + vorāre to devour) includes over 260 placental mammals. ... For other meanings, see Bear (disambiguation). ... In biology, binomial nomenclature is the formal method of naming species. ... George Shaw. ... A nocturnal animal is one that sleeps during the day and is active at night - the opposite of the human (diurnal) schedule. ... Genera Ailuropoda Helarctos Melursus Ursus Tremarctos Arctodus (extinct) A bear is a small mammal in the family Ursidae of the order Carnivora. ... In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biodiversity. ... For other uses of the word, please see Genus (disambiguation). ...

Its body is covered in long, shaggy fur, ranging from auburn to black, with a distinctive "V"-shaped white mark on the chest, a whitish snout and black nose. The snout is long with bare lips and a lack of upper incisors, adaptations for its insect-based diet. The front feet are turned inwards and have non-retractable, curved ivory claws that are adapted for digging. The males are larger than the females; reaching a height of 6 feet (1.8 m) and a weight of 300 pounds (140 kg). A dogs fur usually consists of longer, stiffer, guard hairs—which can be straight, wiry, or wavy, and of various lengths, hiding a soft, short-haired undercoat. ... Auburn is a reddish brown color. ... Black cat, thought by some to cause bad luck Black is both a color and the shade of objects that do not reflect light in any part of the visible spectrum. ... A snout is the protruding portion of an animals face, consisting of its nose, mouth, and jaw. ... A biological adaptation is an anatomical structure, physiological process or behavioral trait of an organism that has evolved over a period of time by the process of natural selection such that it increases the expected long-term reproductive success of the organism. ... Orders See taxonomy Insects (Class Insecta) are a major group of arthropods and the most diverse group of animals on the Earth, with over a million described species — more than all other animal groups combined [1]. Insects may be found in nearly all environments on the planet, although only a... This article is about a foot as a unit of length. ...

The Sloth Bear does not move as slowly as a sloth, and can easily outrun a human. One theory has it that early explorers saw these bears lying upside down in trees and gave them their common name for the similarity to the way a sloth hangs in trees. Another claims that the Sloth Bear gets its name because its normal walk is more of a meandering shuffle. Families Megalonychidae Bradypodidae Sloths are medium-sized mammals that live in Central America belonging to the families Megalonychidae and Bradypodidae, part of the order Pilosa. ...

Its pugmarks are very similar to a human footprint.

Diet

The Sloth Bear primarily eats ants and termites. If needed, it will also eat honey, eggs, birds, flowers, tubers, fruits, grains and monkeys. Subfamilies Aenictogitoninae Agroecomyrmecinae Amblyoponinae (incl. ... Termites, sometimes known as white ants, are a group of eusocial insects usually classified at the taxonomic rank of order, Isoptera. ... A jar of honey, shown with a wooden honey server and scones. ... Look up egg in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... “Aves” redirects here. ... A Phalaenopsis flower A flower, (<Old French flo(u)r<Latin florem<flos), also known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Magnoliophyta, also called angiosperms). ... Not to be confused with benign tumours such as tuberous sclerosis. ... For other uses, see Fruit (disambiguation). ... The word grain has several meanings, most being descriptive of a small piece or particle. ... For other uses, see Monkey (disambiguation). ...

The bear's fondness for honey has caused it to be nicknamed the Honey bear; it has been known to scale the occasional tree to knock down a bee honeycomb, which it will then enjoy on the ground below [1]. Families Andrenidae Apidae Colletidae Halictidae Megachilidae Melittidae Stenotritidae Bee collecting pollen Bees are flying insects, closely related to wasps and ants. ... Honeycomb Honeycombs on a Sacred fig tree A honeycomb is a mass of hexagonal wax cells built by honey bees in their nests to contain their larvae and stores of honey and pollen. ...

A wild Sloth Bear atop a tree in Sri Lanka

Image File history File linksMetadata SlothBearTree. ... Image File history File linksMetadata SlothBearTree. ...

Habitat

It is found in a variety of habitats - from dry grassland to evergreen forests - but has a preference for tropical deciduous forests. Within that category, the Sloth Bear prefers dry deciduous forests and rocky outcrops to wet deciduous forests.

Conservation

Poaching and loss of this habitat and fragmentation of available habitat are the primary threats to the survival of the Sloth Bear on the Indian subcontinent. Predators such as the Leopard, wolves, and the Tiger may attempt to prey on the young, though the female Sloth Bear with young is exceptionally vicious regarding any threats to her young, and can be known to kill an adult male tiger. Adults defend themselves quite well with their claws. Humans hunt the Sloth Bear primarily for its rectum, which is valued in eastern medicine. The Sloth Bear's current conservation status is Vulnerable.^[1] Binomial name Panthera pardus Linnaeus, 1758 Synonyms Felis pardus Linnaeus, 1758 The Leopard (Panthera pardus) is one of the four big cats of the genus Panthera. ... Wolf Wolf Man Mount Wolf Wolf Prizes Wolf Spider Wolf 424 Wolf 359 Wolf Point Wolf-herring Frank Wolf Friedrich Wolf Friedrich August Wolf Hugo Wolf Johannes Wolf Julius Wolf Max Franz Joseph Cornelius Wolf Maximilian Wolf Rudolf Wolf Thomas Wolf As Name Wolf Breidenbach Wolf Hirshorn Other The call... Binomial name Panthera tigris (Linnaeus, 1758) Distribution of tigers in 1900 (red) and 1990 (green) Synonyms Felis tigris Linnaeus, 1758 Tigris striatus Severtzov, 1858 Tigris regalis pink, 1867 Tigers (Panthera tigris) are mammals of the Felidae family and one of four big cats in the Panthera genus. ... The rectum (from the Latin rectum intestinum, meaning straight intestine) is the final straight portion of the large intestine in some mammals, and the gut in others, terminating in the anus. ... The conservation status of a species is an indicator of the likelihood of that species continuing to survive either in the present day or the future. ...

Entertainment and concerns

The neutrality of this article is disputed. Please see the discussion on the talk page.

The Sloth Bear is also known in circuses as a "dancing bear".^[2] They can commonly be seen on the streets of India, leashed by Qalandar Gypsies dancing for tips.^[2] The Gypsies put a rope through their nose, leading to infection.^{[citation needed]} Many conservationists believe this is animal cruelty.^{[citation needed]} Children also fight with the bears as another form of entertainment.^{[citation needed]} Image File history File links Unbalanced_scales. ... The Big Top of Billy Smarts Circus Cambridge 2004. ... Qalandar (Persian: قلندر ) is a title given to Sufi mystics, especially in South Asia. ...

Trivia

• Baloo, from The Jungle Book, is a Sloth Bear.

Wikispecies has information related to:

Sloth Bear

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Sloth Bear

Baloo and Mowgli, from the Disney film Baloo (Hindi: Bear) is the fictional sleepy old grey bear featured in In Rudyard Kiplings The Jungle Book and The Second Jungle Book. ... Cover of a modern edition of the Jungle Book The Jungle Book (1894) is a collection of stories written by Rudyard Kipling. ... GFDL Wikispecies logo File links The following pages link to this file: Solanaceae Species Asterias Homo (genus) Human Wikipedia:Template messages/Links Wikipedia:Template messages/All Homo floresiensis User talk:Tuneguru Template:Wikispecies Categories: GFDL images ... Wikispecies is a sister project supported by the Wikimedia Foundation that anybody can edit with a great potential use to students and researchers. ... Image File history File links Commons-logo. ...

Further reading

• Wildlife Times: Daroji Bear Sanctuary - A trip report to a premier sloth bear territory(Melursus ursinus)

• ARKive - images and movies of the sloth bear (Melursus ursinus)
• Monkey Diet - Bears Eat Monkey in Dutch Zoo
• Wildlife SOS - Indian Sloth Bear Rescue Project - Who established the First and Only Bear Rescue Facility In India.

References

1. ^ Bear Specialist Group (1996). Melursus ursinus. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 08 May 2006. Listed as Vulnerable (VU A2cd, C1+2a v2.3)
2. ^ ^{a b} SmithsonianMagazine.com "Sloth Bears: They Eat Ants, but Take on Tigers"

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (also known as the IUCN Red List and Red Data List), created in 1963, is the worlds most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of plant and animal species and can be found here. ... The World Conservation Union or International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) is an international organization dedicated to natural resource conservation. ...

External Links

• Field Trip Earth - Field Trip Earth is a conservation education website operated by the North Carolina Zoological Society.