. Estimates of the number of black bears in North America vary, with 750,000 being the most often suggested. In the state of Pennsylvania there are believed to be more than 7000 of the animals scattered across the state.

Despite their name, black bears can actually appear in a variety of colors. There are brown black bears, white black bears, and even the blue glacier bear.

Expert estimates of the weights of the bears also seem to vary widely. Conservative measurements put the average weight of the animals is around 300 pounds. However, the degree of sexual dimorphism exhibited by the species makes accurate accounts difficult. The largest black bear recorded was a male shot in Wisconsin in 1885. The bear was 802 pounds, far heavier than would be expected.

They have a wide an varied diet. They can and will eat nearly anything. Typical of bears, they are fond of honey, and are responsible for thousands of dollars worth of damage to aphiaries each year.

The black bear has claws which are shorter and more curved than those of the grizzly bear. This allows it to have a great agility in climbing trees. Often, a sow will encourage her cubs to tree themselves while there is danger. Black bears have a characteristic way of climbing and descending trees. They mostly use their front claws for climbing and keeping a hold.

Selenarctos thibetanus

The Asiatic black bear has many similarities to its American cousin. Both are medium sized, and black. The ears of the Asiatic bear are large and seem inappropriately sized to the rest of its head and those of other bears. These bears have a white patch of fur on their chest, which is often shaped like a V, with some varying amount of white on their chin as well. Occasionally, they can be found in a brown color phase.

The Asiatic black bears are not as widely studied as the other bears, so very little information is available about their relative size and other statistics. Generally, they have been found to be 50-75 inches in length. The males usually weigh from 220-440 pounds, and the females from 110-275 pounds.

These bears can be found throughout Southern Asia. They are known in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nepal, Sikkim, Northern India, Bhutan, and into Burma. They can also be found in Northeast China, and Southeast Russia, Taiwan, and the Japanese islands of Honshu and Shikoku. Mostly, these bears live in forested areas, especially hilly and mountainous places. The preferred elevations change seasonally. In summer, Asiatic black bears have been spotted at over 9,900 feet--moving to lower elevations as the cold of winter comes on. In the northern parts of their range, they den for winter. Current thinking is that the bears in the southern reaches do not hibernate.

The Diet of the Asiatic black bear is quite diverse. They eat carrion, bee's nests, insects, invertebrates, small vertebrates, and fruit. They have been known to kill domestic livestock, but to what degree they exhibit this predation is not known. They are also known to make daybeds and feeding platforms in nut-bearing trees.