The Florida Black
Bear
(Ursus americanus)
By James Call
Illustrated by Lizabeth West
The black bear (Ursus americanus) has a
heavy body, short tail, rounded ears, plantigrade feet (i.e., both heel
and toe make contact with the ground when walking in a manner similar to
humans) and five toes on its front and hind feet. They are much quicker
than their appearance would suggest and can run up to 30 miles-per-hour
for short distances.
It is estimated there are more than 500,000 black bears scattered in 35
states and Canada. The black bear preferred habitat includes forests with
occasional open areas such as meadows.
They will eat virtually anything edible. Vegetables are about 75 percent
of a diet that includes berries, flowers, grasses and sedges, herbs,
tubers and roots, and nuts of all kinds. The remaining portion includes
small mammals, fish, ants and other insects and honey. To eat as much as a
big bear, a human would have to eat 50 hamburgers and 12 large orders of
french fried potatoes each day.
The number of cubs in a litter ranges from one to a maximum of four. At
birth the cubs are blind, have little hair and are tiny. They weigh from 8
1/2 to 11 1/2 ounces. Virtually helpless, they are, however, able to move
sufficiently to suckle on their mother. Her milk is rich in calories,
containing over 20 percent fat. In contrast, human milk contains only
about 4 percent fat.
Cubs will stay with their mother for at least a year. Their survival is
totally dependent on the skill of the mother in both protecting them and
teaching them the basics of what to eat, where to den and how to cope with
danger.
This article appeared in the September-October 2000 issue of Florida
Wildlife magazine.