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| American black bear | |
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| American black bear in Manitoba's Riding Mountain National Park | |
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Order: | Carnivora |
| Family: | Ursidae |
| Genus: | Ursus |
| Species: | U. americanus |
| Binomial name | |
| Ursus americanus Pallas, 1780 | |
| Subspecies | |
16, see text | |
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| American black bear range Present-day range Extirpated | |
| Synonyms | |
Euarctos americanus | |
The American black bear (Ursus americanus) is North America's smallest and most common species of bear. Black bears usually live in forested areas, but do leave forests in search of food. Sometimes they become attracted to human activity due to a lack of food. The American black bear is listed by the IUCN as Least Concern, because the species has a large global population estimated to be twice that of all other bear species combined. In the past century, only 37 people have been killed by these animals.
American black bears usually hibernate during winter. During this time, the black bear's metabolism and heart rate both decrease in relation to one another. In fact, during hibernation, an American black bear's heart can stop for twenty seconds. The body temperature of black bears also decreases to 31 °C (88 °F) during hibernation. When hibernation is over, the black bear's body temperature returns to normal. Black bears are omnivores (eating both meat and plants). They feed on fish, rodents, rabbits, insects, carrion, fruit, nuts, grass, leaves, honey, deer, and moose calves. Their predators are humans, grizzly bears, and american alligators, while wolves, coyotes, cougars, lynxes, foxes, birds of prey, and even other black bears are predators of black bear cubs. view more...
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