Animal Facts - Sun Bear
Sun Bear Predators
Even though Sun Bears are shy, the adults can be fierce if attacked and they have strong paws and jaws, and big teeth.
They are hunted by Leopards, Cloudy Leopards, Tigers and large Reticulated Pythons.
Sometimes Sun Bears are attacked by other bears, especially the Asiatic Black Bear if the two species are in the same territory.
Sun Bears have loose, wrinkly skin around their head and neck.
If they are grabbed or bitten around the neck by another animal they can turn round in their skin and bite back at their attacker.
Scientists still have a lot of research to do about Sun Bears, but we do know that the number of bears living in the wild is dropping quickly. There are several reasons for this.
Around the world humans keep cutting down trees and clearing rainforests to plant crops like cocoa, palm oil and bananas, and to build houses.
The Sun Bear’s h
abitat is shrinking, and the bears are hunted when they damage crops looking for food.
People also hunt them for their fur and gallbladders, which are used in Chinese medicine. Poachers (illegal hunters) can make a lot of money selling these body parts.
Sun Bear mothers are often killed so their cubs can be taken as pets. People think because they are small and shy, they will make good pets. Often this is not so, and as the cubs grow up they can become bad tempered and aggressive, and then they too are killed.
Because the bears live in remote places and are so shy around people in the wild, scientists do not have enough information to know if they are in danger of becoming extinct.
The Sun Bear has been listed as vulnerable on the international list of threatened species. This means the animal may be in danger of extinction, but we do not have enough information to know for sure.
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