It is thought that the black bear, also known as Ursus americanus, evolved in North America and that this is one of the reasons why it is thriving as a species. These mammals can get quite huge, getting as long as 180cm and can be up to three feet tall at the shoulder. Females are smaller, but even the females can weigh up to 400 pounds. They have a very acute sense of smell and they don't have to be jet black in colour - they can be varying shades of brown as well.
As the bear in this photograph is doing, bears mostly walk on all fours, but as you have probably seen in films, they can rise up on their hind legs when they want to. They have really long sharp claws which are efficient at tearing at things.
These bears are most likely to be found in ... continue below the picture...
... forest areas where there is a lot of grass and trees for shade and shelter, but they have been known to live in more open, agricultural fields as well. They eat plants, insects and meat, but it does depend on where they live as to what their diet is. In some areas, bears will eat more nuts and berries as that is what is more readily available.
A black bear, Ursus americanus, grazing on lush green grass near the town of Red Lake, Ontario, Canada.
Technical Information:
I photographed this photo with the digital SLR camera model Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III, aperture of f/5.6, exposure time of 1/250 sec. on ISO 100, as always I used a original Canon Lens, the focus lenght for this picture was 330mm.