Species Fact Profile: Andean Bear (Tremarctos ornatus)

Andean Bear (Spectacled Bear)

Tremarctos ornatus (Cuvier, 1825)

Range: Northwestern South America (Andes Mountains)
Habitat: Cloud Forest, Dry Forest, Scrub
Diet: Fruit, Bromeliads, Cacti, Bamboo, Small Vertebrates, Carrion
Social Grouping: Solitary
Reproduction: Breeding April-June.  1-3 cubs born between December and February.  Gestation period 5.5 - 8.5 months (variation due to delayed implantation).  Cubs stay with mother for over 1 year, become sexually mature at 4-6 years old.
Lifespan: 20 Years (Average, Wild)
Conservation Status: IUCN Vulnerable, CITES Appendix I

• Largest carnivore in South America. 1.2-2 meters, 70-90 centimeters at the shoulder.  Tail 7 centimeters long.  Short muzzle and ears.  Males weigh 100-175 kilograms, females weigh 60-80 kilograms
• Coat is black or brown, sometimes with a reddish tinge.  Highly variable white or cream-colored marks around the eyes (hence the other common name of "spectacled bear"), sometimes extending onto the neck or chest.  These markings may be absent in some individuals.
• Active by day.  Excellent climbers.  Make nests in trees for foraging or for resting and sleeping.
• Adults have no predators.  Cubs may be threatened by pumas, jaguars (though the two overlap little in the wild due to habitat preferences), and adult male Andean bears.
• Make seasonal movements up and down mountains, traveling to lowlands in cooler weather and back up the mountain during warm.
• Only bear species in South America, and the last remaining member of the genus Tremarctos, the prehistoric short-faced bears once found in North and South America
• Threatened by habitat loss, hunted for skin, meat, fat, and claws.  Sometimes persecuted as an agricultural pest, as it occasionally raids crops or takes livestock