| With any luck at
all, Solar Sue, one of the community's favorite Pueblo Zoo residents, will find
Barney, the Zoo's new Sun Bear, irresistible (the staff certainly does!) and
the Sun Bear stork will visit the Zoo. Solar Sue and Barney can be seen in the
Asian Adventure exhibit at the Pueblo Zoo. Barney came to the Pueblo Zoo from
the Miami Zoo. He is twelve years old. He seems to like his new home here at
the Pueblo Zoo. |
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The Malayan Sun Bear, also known as the "honey bear", is found in
Asia, from Burma through Southeast Asia, Malay Peninsula, Sumatra and Borneo.
The bear's range may reach northern China and northeastern India. They are
found in the dense tropical and subtropical forests at all elevations in these
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With a weight somewhere between 60 and 190
pounds, a height of about 2 feet and an overall length of about 3.5 feet the
Malayan Sun Bear is the smallest bear in the world. This bear is named for the
yellowish crescent on its chest. This mark varies in size from bear to bear and
sometimes may not be present at all. The bear's muzzle may vary from grayish
white to orange in color. It has small, beady eyes, small ears and an extremely
long, slender tongue which it uses to feed on insects found in tree trunks. The
feet are tipped with long, sickle-shaped claws, which the bear uses to tear
apart logs and dig through debris in search of
food. |
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The sun bear, like most bears, is
omnivorous, eating tree fruits, termites, small mammals and birds. The bear
also loves to eat honey and it will do so while seemingly being oblivious to
the bee stings. |
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Females first
breed in their third year. Courtship length varies from two days to a week, and
can take place any time of the year. The average gestation period for sun bears
is 100 days. They are thought to give birth to their young hidden in vegetation
on the forest floor. Newborn cubs are tiny (only seven ounces) and are born
blind, hairless, and nearly transparent. Mothers usually nurse their cubs for
17 weeks, and the cubs accompany her until they are grown.
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The sun bear
can bark loudly as a warning to a potential attacker. This bear has several
defenses including its powerful jaws and sharp claws. If a larger predator
grabs the sun bear, it can virtually turn around in its loose skin and bite
back. |
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An expert
climber, the nocturnal bear spends its days sunbathing or sleeping in trees
between 2 and 7 meters off of the ground. It makes its bed in a small platform
of broken branches. These nests look similar to those of orangutans. Sun bears
usually travel in pairs and occasionally can be seen foraging during the
day. |
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The demand
for bear parts is the greatest threat to all bears. Traditional Asian medicine
prescribes bear fat, gall, meat, paws, spinal cord, blood, and bones for
complaints ranging from baldness to rheumatism. Bear entrees are popular in
restaurants, and sun bear paws are favored in Taiwan for soup. The trade in
bear gall in particular is so highly profitable that it has been likened to the
heroin trade, as dried gall can sell for 18 times the price of
gold! |
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With a world
population of an estimated 600 - 1000, the sun bear is one of the rarest
animals on earth. It is on the International Union for the Conservation of
Nature (IUCN)'s red-list for endangered species. Unfortunately for the sun
bear, the world's human population is expected to double by 2025, and the
largest increase is expected to be in Southeast Asia. Coupled with the fact
that forestry is big business in many of these economically troubled nations,
the sun bear needs our help if it is to continue to survive. |
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