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Masters of the Wild Forest

Bears have travelled a path millions of years long — from primeval forests to the present day. Today their future depends on us.

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Brown bear in the forest
Who they are

Strength, intelligence and incredible memory

Bears are among the most intelligent predators on the planet. They remember places where they found food for years, can distinguish hundreds of scents from up to 30 kilometres away, and solve problems on a par with primates.

Despite their fearsome appearance, most bears are omnivores: up to 80% of a brown bear's diet is berries, nuts, roots and grasses.

0

species of bears live on the planet today

0 kg

an adult male polar bear can weigh

0 mo

of winter sleep in northern latitudes

0 yrs

average lifespan in the wild

The bear family

Eight species — eight fates

From Arctic ice to the bamboo forests of China. Each species adapted to its own world, and almost every one is threatened today.

Least concern Brown bear

Brown Bear

Ursus arctos

The most widespread species. Found across Eurasia and North America, a symbol of the northern taiga.

Vulnerable Polar bear

Polar Bear

Ursus maritimus

The largest land predator. Melting Arctic ice is robbing it of its hunting grounds.

Vulnerable Giant panda

Giant Panda

Ailuropoda melanoleuca

A symbol of conservation. Thanks to human effort, the population has grown to ~1,900 individuals.

Least concern American black bear

American Black Bear

Ursus americanus

An excellent tree climber that often wanders into suburbs.

Vulnerable Asiatic black bear

Asiatic Black Bear

Ursus thibetanus

The "moon bear" with a white crescent on its chest. Listed in the Red Data Book of Russia.

Vulnerable Sun bear

Sun Bear

Helarctos malayanus

The smallest of all bears. Lives in the tropical forests of Southeast Asia.

"When the last bear disappears, a whole forest disappears with it"Folk wisdom of the northern peoples
History

A journey of 20 million years

Bears appeared long before humans and survived several ice ages. Yet in the last two centuries their numbers have fallen more than in all of previous history.

20 million years ago

The first bears

In the Miocene, the ancestor of modern bears — Ursavus, the "dawn bear", the size of a large dog — branches off from small dog-like carnivores.

2.5 million years

Cave giants

The cave bear appears in Europe — a third larger than today's brown bear. Its bones are found in caves alongside prehistoric cave paintings.

150,000 years

Birth of the polar bear

Part of the brown bear population moves into the Arctic and evolves rapidly: white fur, webbed paws, a fat layer up to 10 cm thick.

19th century

The age of extermination

Mass hunting, deforestation and land development. Bears all but vanish from Western Europe; in North America the grizzly population falls by 98%.

1966

The IUCN Red List

The International Union for Conservation of Nature publishes the first Red List. Six of the eight bear species eventually receive protected status.

Today

Hope

Reserves, hunting bans and recovery programmes are paying off: the panda has been moved from "endangered" to "vulnerable", and the brown bear is returning to the Alps and Pyrenees.

Under protection

Why bears are on the Red List

Six of the eight bear species are on the IUCN Red List. The polar bear and Asiatic black bear are also protected by the Red Data Book of Russia. The main threat is not predators — it is people.

  • 🌲
    Habitat lossLogging and road building fragment territories into isolated islands.
  • 🌡️
    Climate changeArctic sea ice shrinks by 13% every decade — polar bears are losing the ability to hunt.
  • 🎯
    PoachingBile, paws and pelts remain the subject of illegal trade in Asia.
  • 🚧
    Human conflictBears that approach villages in search of food are usually killed.
Polar bear on ice
≈ 26 000polar bears remain in the wild, according to IUCN estimates
Bears can run at up to 55 km/hA bear's sense of smell is 2,100 times sharper than a human'sBear cubs are born weighing just 500 gramsA polar bear's skin is actually black — only its fur looks whiteA panda eats up to 38 kg of bamboo a day Bears can run at up to 55 km/hA bear's sense of smell is 2,100 times sharper than a human'sBear cubs are born weighing just 500 gramsA polar bear's skin is actually black — only its fur looks whiteA panda eats up to 38 kg of bamboo a day
The future is in our hands

Let's save the masters of the forest

Everyone can help: support a reserve, refuse products made from wild animals, tell your friends about the problem.

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