Sun Bears Are Under the Threat of Extinction

On the 12th of November, sun bears were given a status of Vulnerable animals. There are 8 kinds of these bears and 6 of them are under the threat of extinction. These bears can be found in places ranging from the eastern Himalayas to China, also in some parts of Indochina and the Malayan peninsula. Their favourite places of living are tropical forests.

Sun bears are called so because of a white to orange spot right in the middle of the chest. The coat of sun bears is black, very glossy and sleek. This spot has the form of sun-rising. Sun-bear considered to be the smallest of all the existing bear species (from 1.2 to 1.5 m from head to tail). This bear has rather long paws with sharp claws and palms allowing it to climb. Tail is not big at all. These bears have a funny peculiarity - they walk on the whole foot - it looks so unusual! Sun bears are perfect tree-climbers, they adore sleeping on trees. Also, these bears are nocturnal animals. Sun bears possess long tails, making them capable to catch food on distances. They traditionally eat termites, bees, earthworms and even fruits. But, when occasion offers they can happily eat small rodents and lizards. In some areas, sun bears are reported to damage crops.

Threats:

• number of sun bears is constantly goes down. So, the first reason is deforestation of their natural place of living;
• hunting (these bears are hunted for sport, fur, meat and gall bladder, that is popular for improving health). Malayan sun bears are hunted for bile and paws;
• young bears are sold as pets (as they are considered to be small and non-aggressive to people).