Description
The Spectacled Bear is the only bear native to South America and is technically the largest land carnivore on that continent, although as little as 5% of its diet is composed of meat. South America's largest obligate carnivore is the jaguar. Among South America's extant, native land animals, only the Baird's and South American Tapirs are heavier than this species. The Spectacled bear is a mid-sized species of bear. Overall its fur is blackish in color, though bears may vary from jet black to dark brown and to even a reddish hue. The species typically has distinctive beige-coloured marking across its face and upper chest, though not all Spectacled bears have "spectacle" markings. The pattern and extent of pale markings are slightly different on each individual bear and bears can be readily distinguished by this. Males are a third larger than females in dimensions and sometimes twice their weight. Males can weigh 100 – 200 kilograms (220 – 440 lb), and females 35 –82 kilograms (77 – 181 lb). Length can range from 120 to 200 cm (47–79 in), with a tail length of a mere 7 cm (2.8 in), and shoulder height from 60 to 90 cm (24–30 in). Compared to other living bears, this species has a more rounded face with a relatively short and broad snout. In some extinct species of the Tremarctinae subfamily, this facial structure has been thought to be an adaptation to a largely carnivorous diet, despite the modern Spectacled bears' herbivorous dietary preferences.
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