Living Beings
    Source-identified Helarctos malayanus; documentary image Framed for display
    1 / 1

    Malaienbär (Helarctos malayanus) Kölner Zoo-20110912-RM-143000.jpg · Resized and converted to WebP for display. Ermell · CC BY-SA 4.0

    Field guide · species

    Sun Bear

    Helarctos malayanus

    AnimaliaMammaliaCarnivoraUrsidae

    The sun bear is a small tropical forest bear of Southeast Asia. Curved claws, climbing ability and a long mobile tongue help it exploit foods that are hidden inside wood, nests and fruiting trees.

    Public research profile · final editorial review pending.

    Compare species
    Tree of lifeScientific lineage
    1. LifeLife
    2. DomainEukaryota
    3. KingdomAnimalia
    4. PhylumChordata
    5. ClassMammalia
    6. OrderCarnivora
    7. FamilyUrsidae
    8. GenusHelarctos
    9. SpeciesHelarctos malayanus
    Advanced classification

    Complete source lineage, including intermediate ranks. The standard view uses Life and the eight principal ranks.

    1. cellular organisms cellular root
    2. Eukaryota domain
    3. Opisthokonta clade
    4. Metazoa kingdom
    5. Eumetazoa clade
    6. Bilateria clade
    7. Deuterostomia clade
    8. Chordata phylum
    9. Craniata subphylum
    10. Vertebrata clade
    11. Gnathostomata clade
    12. Teleostomi clade
    13. Euteleostomi clade
    14. Sarcopterygii superclass
    15. Dipnotetrapodomorpha clade
    16. Tetrapoda clade
    17. Amniota clade
    18. Mammalia class
    19. Theria clade
    20. Eutheria clade
    21. Boreoeutheria clade
    22. Laurasiatheria superorder
    23. Carnivora order
    24. Caniformia suborder
    25. Ursidae family
    26. Helarctos genus
    27. Helarctos malayanus species
    Open in taxonomy explorer ↗

    Physical traits

    A short dark coat contrasts with a pale chest patch and lighter muzzle. Strong limbs and curved claws are conspicuous features of its climbing build.

    Scientific source 1 ↗ · Scientific source 2 ↗

    Habitat and range

    Tropical forests provide fruiting trees, insect colonies and sheltered resting places. Tree cover is important even though bears also forage on the ground.

    Scientific source 1 ↗ · Scientific source 2 ↗

    Diet and nutrition

    Insects and other invertebrates are eaten alongside fruit and other foods. Feeding varies with local availability; the species is an opportunistic omnivore, not exclusively a honey eater.

    Scientific source 1 ↗ · Scientific source 2 ↗

    Behavior and activity

    Sun bears are capable climbers and may rest in trees. Their tropical setting differs from the strongly seasonal environments of bears that undergo a prolonged winter dormancy.

    Scientific source 1 ↗ · Scientific source 2 ↗

    Reproduction and life cycle

    Young depend on maternal care. Much reproductive information comes from managed animals, and detailed schedules should not be assumed identical in every wild population.

    Scientific source 1 ↗ · Scientific source 2 ↗

    Geographic distribution

    The Mammal Diversity Database v2.5 records this species in Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, China?.

    Scientific source 1 ↗ · Scientific source 2 ↗

    Evidence

    Sources

    Connected life

    No reviewed ecological connections in the collection yet.

    Explore network ↗