![]() They live mainly in the lush high altitude forests clothing the slopes of the Andes Mountains climbing as high as 14,000 feet (4,300 metres). The Spectacled Bears preferred habitats are tropical mountain forests and alpine grasslands. Spectacled Bears have very strong jaws and wide, flat molars to help them chew through tough vegetation such as tree bark. Their front limbs are longer than their back limbs which helps them to climb trees more easily. ![]() They have long, curved, sharp claws that are used for climbing and for digging into insect mounds such as ant hills and termite hills for food. All other types of bear have 14 pairs of ribs, however, the Spectacled Bear only has 13. Because of the warm climate where they live, their fur is reasonable thinner than most other bear species and they do not have to hibernate. The shaggy fur of the Spectacled Bear is black with beige sometimes red colored markings on its face and upper chest. ![]() Spectacled Bears are so named because of the large white circles or semicircles of white fur around their eyes giving them the appearance of wearing spectacles. Females rarely weigh more than 180 pounds (82 kilograms). Males are significantly larger than females (33% larger) and grow over 5 feet (1.5 metres) in length and weigh up to 340 pounds (154 kilograms). Spectacled Bears are generally smaller bears of the Ursidae family. Females are called ‘Cows’, males are called ‘Boars’ and the young are called ‘Cubs’. The Spectacled Bear is one of the most endangered bear species in the world, the most endangered being the Giant Panda Bear which is their closest living relative today. The Spectacled Bear is the closest living kin of the short-faced bears of the Middle Pleistocene to Late Pleistocene age. ![]() It is the only living bear species native to South America. Spectacled Bears (Tremarctos ornatus) also known as the ‘Andean Bears’ are distributed in the Northern Andes Mountains including Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and into Chile. ![]()
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