Black Bear (Ursus americanus)

Special Segments Butterflies of North America Conifers of North America Eastern Birds List of N.A. Insects Home Eastern Wildflowers General Topics Natural History Ecology Family Environment Evolution Home Education Home Conservation Geophysics Paleontology Commercial Organizations

Black Bear (Ursidae: Ursus americanus)

The Black Bear has the widest distribution of any bear species in North America. It occurs throughout the Northern Boreal Forest edging into the arctic tundra. The Black Bear is found in eastern North America from Labrador southward to Florida. Within the Eastern Deciduous Forest it is found primarily in New England and the mountain forests of the Adirondacks and Appalachians, but is also found along the Gulf Coast, Florida, Arkansas, and Missouri. In the west the Black Bear is occurs in the Montane Coniferous Forest southward as far as northern Mexico.

Identifying Features: The name Black Bear is a bit misleading. The species is primarily black in color, but other color forms occur including chocolate, red-brown, and blond. Black Bears with cream-white fur occur on the coasts of northern British Columbia and the Yukon. Black Bears vary in size depending on their habitat and geographical location. The average length is between 5 to 6 feet and the bears are between 2 to 3 feet in height at the shoulders. The Black Bear lacks a hump between the front shoulders and the face in profile is straight.

Similar Species: The Brown Bear (also known as the Alaska Brown Bear and Grizzly Bear) (see picture below) is a larger species, ranging between 6 to 8 feet in length and 4 to 4.5 feet tall at the shoulders. The Brown Bear has a hump between the front shoulders missing in the Black Bear. The Brown Bear Face in profile is concave at the top, not straight.

Habitat: The Black Bear is found exclusively in forest and the openings occurring in the forest. The forests include the Eastern Deciduous Forest, the Northern Boreal Forest, and the montane forests of the western United States and Canada.

Food: The diet of the Black Bear includes just about anything it can get its hands on (omnivorous). Food items include berries, tubers, nuts, insects, small mammals, bird eggs, and carrion. Seventy percent of its diet, however, is typically plant material.

Behavior: The Black Bear is solitary (except for a female with cubs) and primarily nocturnal, although it is sometimes seen out and about during the day. The size of a Black Bear's home range depends in part on the amount of food available. Male home ranges are about 4 times larger than those of females and overlap the female home ranges. In the northern, colder part of its range the Black Bear may spend 4 to 6 months in hibernation. Black Bears further south stay active all year. Prior to hibernation the bear lays down a heavy layer of fat. During hibernation a bear's heart rate drops from forty to seventy beats a minute to only eight to twelve. However unlike most hibernating animal species, the body temperature only drops 5 to 9 degrees F. Black Bears live between 20 and 25 years.

Reproduction: Black Bear females reach sexual maturity at 3 to 4 years of age and males a year or so later. Mating takes place in June, July, and August. Females may mate with several males during the mating season. Pregnancy lasts about 220 days, and the cubs are born in a maternity den in January and February. Litter size ranges from one to five, but the average litter is two. Cubs are weaned at six to eight months, but they remain with their mothers for a year and a half. Black Bear females, therefore, mate every other year unless they lose their cubs prematurely.