Common characteristics of modern bears include a large body with stocky legs, a long snout, shaggy hair, plantigrade paws with five nonretractile claws, and a short tail. While the polar bear is mostly carnivorous and the giant panda feeds almost entirely on bamboo, the remaining six species are omnivorous, with largely varied diets including both plants and animals.
With the exceptions of courting individuals and mothers with their young, bears are typically solitary animals. They are generally diurnal, but may be active during the night (nocturnal) or twilight (crepuscular), particularly around humans. Bears are aided by an excellent sense of smell, and despite their heavy build and awkward gait, they can run quickly and are adept climbers and swimmers. In autumn some bear species forage large amounts of fermented fruits which affects their behaviour. Bears use shelters such as caves and burrows as their dens, which are occupied by most species during the winter for a long period of sleep similar to hibernation.
Bears have been hunted since prehistoric times for their meat and fur. To this day, they play a prominent role in the arts, mythology, and other cultural aspects of various human societies. In modern times, the bear's existence has been pressured through the encroachment on its habitats and the illegal trade of bears and bear parts, including the Asian bile bear market. The IUCN lists six bear species as vulnerable or endangered, and even least concern species such as the brown bear are at risk of extirpation in certain countries. The poaching and international trade of these most threatened populations is prohibited, but still ongoing.
Evolutionary history
The family Ursidae is one of nine families in the suborder Caniformia, or "doglike" carnivors, within the order Carnivora. Bears' closest living relatives are the pinnipeds (seals and kin).
The following synapomorphic (derived) traits set bears apart from related families:
presence of an alisphenoid canal
paroccipital processes that are large and not fused to the auditory bullae
auditory bullae are not enlarged
lacrimal bone is vestigial
cheek teeth are bunodont and hence indicative of a broad, hypocarnivorous (non-strictly meat-eating) diet (although hypercarnivorous (strictly meat-eating) taxa are known from the fossil record)
carnassials are flattened
Additionaly, members of this family possess posteriorly oriented M2 postprotocrista molars, elongated m2 molars, and a reduction of the premolars.
Modern bears comprise eight species in three subfamilies: Ailuropodinae (monotypic with the giant panda), Tremarctinae (monotypic with the Spectacled Bear), and Ursinae (containing six species divided into one to three genera, depending upon authority).
Fossil bears
The earliest members of Ursidae belong to the extinct subfamily Amphicynodontinae, including Parictis (late Eocene to early middle Miocene, 38-18 million years (Ma) ago) and the slightly younger Allocyon (early Oligocene, 34-30 Ma), both from North America. These animals looked very different from today's bears, being small and raccoon-like in overall appearance, and a diet perhaps more similar to that of a badger. Parictis does not appear in Eurasia and Africa until the Miocene. It is unclear whether late Eocene ursids were also present in Eurasia, although faunal exchange across the
Bering land bridge may have been possible during a major sea level low stand as early as the late Eocene (~37 Ma) and continuing into the early Oligocene.[4] European genera morphologically very similar to Allocyon, and also the much younger American Kolponomos (~18 Ma), are known from the Oligocene, including Amphicticeps and Amphicynodon.Plithocyon armagnacensis skull
The raccoon-sized, dog-like Cephalogale is the oldest-known member of the subfamily Hemicyoninae which first appeared during the middle Oligocene in Eurasia ~30 Ma ago. The subfamily also includes the younger genera Phoberocyon (~20-15 Ma), and Plithocyon (~15-7 Ma).
A Cephalogale-like species gave rise to the genus Ursavus during the early Oligocene (30-28 Ma); this genus proliferated into many species in Asia and is ancestral to all living bears. Species of Ursavus subsequently entered North America together with Amphicynodon and Cephalogale during the early Miocene (21-18 Ma).
Members of living lineages of bears diverged from Ursavus ~20 Ma ago, likely via the species Ursavus elmensis. Based on genetic and morphological data, the subfamily Ailuropodinae (pandas) was the first to diverge from other living bears ~19 Ma ago, although no fossils of this group have been found pre-dating about 5 Ma.
The New World short-faced bears (Tremarctinae) differenciated from Ursinae following a dispersal event into the Americas during the mid Miocene (~13 Ma).[5] Their earliest fossil representative is Plionarctos in North America (~10-2 Ma). This genus is probably the direct ancestor to the North American short-faced bears (genus Arctodus), the South American short-faced bear (Pararctotherium and Arctotherium), and the spectacled bears, Tremarctos, represented by both an extinct North American species (T. floridanus), and the lone surviving representative of the Tremarctinae, the South American spectacled bear (T. ornatus).
The subfamily Ursinae experienced a dramatic proliferation of taxa ~5.3-4.5 Ma ago coincident with major environmental changes, with the first members of the genus Ursus also appearing around this time. The sloth bear is a modern survivor of one of the earliest lineages to diverge during this radiation event (~5.3 Ma); it took on its peculiar morphology related to its diet on termites and ants no later than by the early Pleistocene. By 3-4 Ma ago, the species Ursus minimus appears in the fossil record of Europe, which apart from size is nearly identical to today's Asiatic black bear. It is likely ancestral to all bears within Ursinae, perhaps aside from the sloth bear. Two lineages evolved from U. minimus, the black bears (including the sun bear, the Asiatic black bear, and the American black bear), and the brown bears. Modern brown bears evolved from U. minimus via Ursus etruscus, which itself is ancestral to both the extinct Pleistocene cave bear and the ancestor of today's brown and polar bears. Species of Ursinae have migrated repeatedly into N. America from Eurasia as early
as 4 Ma ago during the early Pliocene.The fossil record of bears is exceptionally good. Direct ancestor-descendent relationships between individual species are often fairly well-established, with sufficient intermediate forms known to make the precise cut-off between an ancestral and its daughter species subjective.
Other extinct bear genera include Agriarctos, Indarctos, and Agriotherium (sometimes placed within hemicyonids).
Taxonomic revisions of living bear species
The giant panda's taxonomy (subfamily Ailuropodinae) has long been debated. Its original classification by Armand David in 1869 was within the bear genus Ursus, but in 1870 it was reclassified by Alphonse Milne-Edwards to the raccoon family.[8] In recent studies, the majority of DNA analyses suggest that the giant panda has a much closer relationship to other bears and should be considered a member of the family Ursidae.[9] Estimates of divergence dates place the giant panda as the most ancient offshoot among living taxa within Ursidae, having split from other bears 17.9 to 22.1 Ma ago. The red panda was included within Ursidae in the past. However, more recent research does not support such a conclusion and instead places it in its own family Ailuridae, in superfamily Musteloidea along with Mustelidae, Procyonidae, and Mephitidae.[10][11][12] Multiple similarities between the two pandas, including the presence of false thumbs, are thus thought to represent an example of convergent evolution for feeding primarily on bamboo.
There is also evidence that, unlike their neighbors elsewhere, the brown bears of Alaska's ABC islands are more closely related to polar bears than they are to other brown bears in the world. Researchers Gerald Shields and Sandra Talbot of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Institute of Arctic Biology studied the DNA of several samples of the species and found that their DNA is different from that of other brown bears. The researchers discovered that their DNA was unique compared to brown bears anywhere else in the world. The discovery has shown that while all other brown bears share a brown bear as their closest relative, those of Alaska's ABC Islands differ and share their closest relation with the polar bear. There is also the very rare Tibetan Blue Bear, which is a type of brown bear. This animal has never been photographed.
Koalas are often referred to as bears due to their appearance; they are not bears, however, but marsupials.
Classification
Family Ursidae
Subfamily Ailuropodinae
Giant Panda, Ailuropoda melanoleuca
Dwarf Panda, Ailuropoda minor†
Subfamily Tremarctinae
Spectacled Bear, Tremarctos ornatus
Florida Cave Bear, Tremarctos floridanus†
Giant Short-faced Bear, Arctodus simus†
Unnamed short-faced bear species, Arctodus pristinus†
Brazilian Short-faced Bear, Arctotherium brasilense†
Argentine Short-faced Bear, Arctotherium latidens†
Subfamily Ursinae
Brown Bear, Ursus (Ursus) arctos
Subspecies Syrian (Brown) Bear Ursus arctos syriacus
Subspecies Grizzly Bear, Ursus arctos horribilis
Subspecies Kodiak Bear, Ursus arctos middendorffi
Subspecies Himalayan Brown Bear or Himalayan Red Bear, Ursus arctos isabellinus
Subspecies Himalayan Blue Bear, Ursus arctos pruinosus
Subspecies Bergman's Bear, Ursus arctos piscator†?
Subspecies Eurasian Brown Bear Ursus arctos arctos
Gobi bear, Ursus arctos gobiensis (very rare)
Atlas Bear, Ursus arctos crowtheri†
American
Black Bear, Ursus (Ursus) americanusSubspecies Cinnamon Bear, Ursus americanus cinnamomum
Subspecies Kermode Bear, Ursus americanus kermodei
Polar Bear, Ursus maritimus
Subspecies Ursus maritimus tyrannus†
Asian Black Bear, Ursus thibetanus
Formosan Black Bear, Ursus thibetanus formosanus
Ursus thibetanus gedrosianus
Ursus thibetanus japonicus
Ursus thibetanus laniger
Ursus thibetanus mupinensis
Ursus thibetanus thibetanus
Ursus thibetanus ussuricus
Sloth Bear, Melursus ursinus
Subspecies Sri Lankan Sloth Bear Melursus ursinus inornatus
Subspecies Indian Sloth Bear Melursus ursinus ursinus
Sun Bear, Helarctos malayanus
Subspecies Borneo Sun Bear Helarctos malayanus euryspilus
Auvergne Bear, Ursus minimus†
Etruscan Bear, Ursus etruscus†
European Cave Bear, Ursus spelaeus†
MacFarlane's Bear, Ursus (Vetularctos) inopinatus (cryptid; if an authentic species, extinct)
Deninger's bear, Ursus deningeri†
The genera Melursus and Helarctos are sometimes also included in Ursus. The Asiatic black bear and the polar bear used to be placed in their own genera, Selenarctos and Thalarctos which are now placed at subgenus rank.
A number of hybrids have been bred between American black, brown, and polar bears (see Ursid hybrids).
Biology
Morphology
Bears are generally bulky and robust animals with relatively short legs. Bears are sexually dimorphic with regard to size, with the males being larger. Larger species t
end to show increased levels of sexual dimorphism in comparison to smaller species, and where a species varies in size across its distribution individuals from larger sized areas tend also to vary more. Bears are the most massive terrestrial members of the order Carnivora, with some Polar Bears and Brown Bears weighing over 750 kilograms (1,700 lb). As to which species is the largest may depend on whether the assessment is based on which species has the largest individuals (brown bears) or on the largest average size (polar bears). The smallest bears are the Sun Bears of Asia, which weigh an average of 65 kilograms (140 lb) for the males and 45 kilograms (99 lb) for the females.Unlike other land carnivorans, bears are plantigrade. They distribute their weight toward the hind feet which makes then look lumbering when they walk. They are still quite fast with the brown bear reaching 30 miles per hour (48 km/h) although they are still slower than felines and canines. Bears can stand on their hind feet and sit up straight with remarkable balance. Bears have non-retractable claws which are used for digging, climbing, tearing and catching prey. Their ears are rounded.
Bears have an excellent sense of smell, a better sense of smell in fact than the dogs (Canidae), or possibly any other mammal. This sense of smell is used for signalling between bears (either to warn off rivals or detect mates) and for finding food. Smell is the principal sense used by bears to find most of their diet.
Dentition
Unlike most other members of the Carnivora, bears have relatively undeveloped carnassial teeth, and their teeth are adapted for a diet that includes a significant amount of vegetable matter. The
canine teeth are large, and the molar teeth flat and crushing. There is considerable variation in dental formula even within a given species. It has been suggested that this indicates bears are still in the process of evolving from a carnivorous to a predominantly herbivorous diet. Polar bears appear to have secondarily re-evolved fully functional carnassials, as their diet has switched back towards carnivory. The dental formula for living bears is: Upper: 3.1.2-4.2, lower: 3.1.2-4.3Distribution and habitat
The bears are mostly found in the northern hemisphere, with a single species, the Andean Bear, occurring in South America. The Atlas Bear, a subspecies of the Brown Bear, was the only bear native to Africa. It was distributed in North Africa from Morocco to Libya, but has been extinct since around the 1870s. All the other species are found in North America, Asia and Europe. The most widespread species is the Brown Bear, which occurs from Western Europe eastwards through Asia to the western areas of North America. The American Black Bear is restricted to North America, and the Polar bear is restricted to the Arctic Sea. All the remaining species are Asian.
With the exception of the Polar Bear the bears are mostly forest species. Some species, particularly the Brown Bear, may inhabit or seasonally use other areas such as alpine scrub or tundra.
Behaviour
While many people think that bears are nocturnal, they are in fact generally diurnal, active for the most part during the day. The belief that they are nocturnal apparently comes from the habits of bears that live near humans which engage in some activities, such as raiding trash cans or crops, are nocturnal in order to avoid humans. The sloth bear of Asia is the most nocturnal of the bears, but this varies by individual and females with cubs are often diurnal in order to avoid competition with males and nocturnal predators. Bears are overwhelmingly solitary and are considered to be the most asocial of all the Carnivora. Liaisons between breeding bears are brief, and the only times bears are encountered in small groups are mothers with young or occasional seasonal bounties of rich food (such as salmon runs).
Vocalizations
Bears produce a variety of vocalizations such as:
Moaning: produced mostly as mild warnings to potential threats or in fear.
Barking: produced during times of alarm, excitement or to give away the animal's position.
Huffing: made during courtship or between mother and cubs to warn of danger.
Growling: produced as strong warnings to potential threats or in anger.
Roaring: used much for the same reasons as growls and also to proclaim territory and for intimidation.
Diet and interspecific interactions
Their carnivorous reputation non-withstanding, most bears have adopted a diet of more plant than animal matter and are completely opportunistic omnivores. Some bears will climb trees in order to obtain mast (edible vegatative or reproductive parts such as acorns), smaller species which are more able to climb include a greater amount of this in their diet. Such masts can be very important to the diet of these species, and mast failures may result in long range movements by bears looking for alternate sources of food. One exception is the Polar Bear, which has adopted a diet mainly of marine mammals to survive in the Arctic. The other exception is the Giant Panda which has adopted a diet mainly of bamboo. Stable isotope analysis of the extinct Giant Short-faced Bear (Arctodus simus) shows that it was also an exclusive meat eater, probably a scavenger. The Sloth Bear, though not a
s specialized as the previous two species, has lost several front teeth usually seen in bears and developed a long, suctioning tongue in order to feed on the ants, termites and other burrowing insects that they favour. At certain times of the year these insects can make up 90% of their diet. All bears will feed on any food source that becomes available, and the nature of that varies seasonally. A study of Asiatic Black Bears in Taiwan found that they would consume large numbers of acorns when they were most common, and switch to ungulates in other times of the year.When taking warm-blooded animals, bears will typically take small or young animals, as they are easier to catch. Although (besides Polar Bears) both species of black bear and the Brown Bear can sometimes take large prey, such as ungulates. Often, bears will feed on other large animals when they encounter a carcass, whether or not the carcass is claimed by or is the kill of another predator. This competition is the main source of interspecies conflict. Bears are typically the apex predators in their range due to their size and power, and can defend a carcass against nearly all comers. Mother bears also can usually defend their cubs against other predators. The Tiger is the only known predator known to regularly prey on adult bears, including Sloth Bears, Asiatic Black Bears, Giant Pandas, Sun Bears and small Brown Bears.
Breeding
The age at which bears reach sexual maturity is highly variable, both between and within species. Sexual maturity is dependent on body condition, which is in turn dependent upon the food supply available to the growing individual. In the females of smaller species may have young in as little as two years, whereas the larger species may not rear young until they are four or even nine years old. First breeding may be even later in males, where competition for mates may leave younger males without access to females.
The bear's courtship period is very brief. Bears in northern climates reproduce seasonally, usually after a period of inactivity similar to hibernation, although tropical species breed all year round. Cubs are born toothless, blind, and bald. The cubs of brown bears, usually born in litters of 1–3, will typically stay with the mother for two full seasons. They feed on their mother's milk through the duration of their relationship with their mother, although as the cubs continue to grow, nursing becomes less frequent and cubs learn to begin hunting with the mother. They will remain with the mother for approximately three years, until she enters the next cycle of estrus and drives the cubs off. Bears will reach sexual maturity in five to seven years. Male bears, especially Polar and Brown Bears, will kill and sometimes devour cubs born to another father in order to induce a female to breed again. Female bears are often successful in driving off males in protection of their cubs, despite being rather smaller.
Winter dormancy
Many bears of northern regions are assumed to hibernate in the winter. While many bear species do go into a physiological state often colloquially called "hibernation" or "winter sleep", it is not true hibernation. In true hibernators, body temperatures drop to near ambient and heart rate slows drastically, but the animals periodically rouse themselves to urinate or defecate and to eat from stored food. The body temperature of bears, on the other hand, drops only a few degrees from normal and heart rate slows only slightly. They normally do not wake during this "hibernation", and therefore do not eat, drink, urinate or defecate the entire period. Higher body heat and being easily roused may be adaptations, because females give birth to their cubs during this winter sleep.
Relationship with humans
See also: Bear danger
Some species, such as the polar bear, American black bear, Sloth Bear and the brown bear, are dangerous to humans, especially in areas where they have become used to people. All bears are physically powerful and are likely capable of fatally attacking a person, but they, for the most part, are shy, are easily frightened and will avoid humans. Injuries caused by bears are rare, but are often widely reported.[ The danger that bears pose is often vastly exaggerated, in part by the human imagination. However, when a mother feels her cubs are threatened, she will behave ferociously. It is recommended to give all bears a wide berth because they are behaviorally unpredictable.
Bears may also come into conflict with humans where they raid crops or attack livestock. These problems may be the work of only a few bears but create a climate of conflict as farmers and ranchers may perceive all losses as due to bears and advocate the preventive removal of all bears. Mitigation methods may be used to reduce bear damage to crops, and reduce local antipathy towards bears.
Laws have been passed in many areas of the world to protect bears from hunters' habitat destruction. Public perception of bears is often very positive, as people identify with bears due to their omnivorous diet, ability to stand on two legs, and symbolic importance, and there is widespread support for bear protection, at least in more affluent societies. In more rural and poorer regions attitudes may be more shaped by the dangers posed by bears and the economic costs that they incur to farmers and ranchers. Some populated areas with bear populations have also outlawed the feeding of bears, including allowing them access to garbage or other food waste. Bears in captivity have been trained to dance, box, or ride bicycles; however, this use of the animals became controversial in the late 20th century. Bears were kept for baiting in Europe at least since the 16th century.
Bears as food and medicine
Many people enjoy hunting bears and eating them. Their meat is dark and stringy, like a tough cut of beef. In Cantonese cuisine, bear paws are considered a delicacy. The peoples of China, Japan, and Korea use bears' body parts and secretions (notably their gallbladders and bile) as part of traditional Chinese medicine. It is believed more than 12,000 bile bears are kept on farms, farmed for their bile, in China, Vietnam and South Korea. Bear meat must be cooked thoroughly as it can often be infected with trichinellosis.
Culture
Names
The English word "bear" comes from Old English bera and belongs to a family of names for the bear in Germanic languages, in origin from an adjective meaning "brown".[31] In Scandinavia the word for bear is björn (or bjørn), and is a relatively common given name for males. The use of this name is ancient and has been found mentioned in several runestone inscriptions. In Germanic culture, the bear was a symbol of the warrior, as evident from the Old English term beorn which can take the meaning of both "bear" and "warrior".
The reconstructed Proto-Indo-European name of the bear is *h₂ŕ̥tḱos, whence Sanskrit r̥kṣa, Avestan arša, Greek ἄρκτος, Latin ursus, Welsh arth (whence perhaps the given name "Arthur"). Also compared is Hittite ḫartagga-, the name of a monster or predator. In the binomial name of the brown bear, Ursus arctos, Linné simply combined the Latin and Greek names. The female first name "Ursula", originally derived from a Christian saint's name and common in English- and German-speaking countries, means "little she-bear" (dimunitive of Latin ursa). In Switzerland the male first name "Urs" is especially popular.
In Russian and other Slavic languages, the word for bear, "Medved" (медведь), and variants or derivatives such as Medvedev are common surnames.
The Irish family name "McMahon" means "Son of Bear" in Irish.
In East European Jewish communities, the name "Ber" Yiddish cognate of "Bear" has been attested as a common male first name, at least since the 18th century, and was among others the name of several prominent Rabbis. The Yiddish "Ber" is still in use among Orthodox Jewish communities in Israel, the US and other countries.
With the transition from Yiddish to Hebrew under the influence of Zionism, the Hebrew word for "bear", "Dov" , was taken up in contemporary Israel and is at present among the commonly used male first names in that country.
"Ten Bears" (Paruasemana) was the name of a well-known 19th Century chieftain among the Comanche. Also among other Native American tribes, bear-related names are attested.
Myth and legend
There is evidence of prehistoric bear worship, see Arctic, Arcturus, Great Bear, Berserker, Kalevala. Anthropologists such as Joseph Campbell have regarded this as a common feature in most of the fishing and hunting-tribes. The prehistoric Finns, along with most Finno-Ugric peoples, considered the bear as the spirit of one's forefathers. This is why the bear (karhu) was a greatly respected animal, with several euphemistic names (such as otso, mesikämmen and kontio). The bear is the national animal of Finland.
This kind of attitude is reflected in the traditional Russian fairy tale "Morozko", whose arrogant protagonist Ivan tries to kill a mother bear and her cubs and is punished and humbled by having his own head turned magically into a bear's head and being subsequently shunned by human society.
"The Brown Bear of Norway" is a Scottish fairy tale telling the adventures of a girl who married a prince magically turned into a bear, and who managed to get him back into a human form by the force of her love and after many trials and difficulties.
There has been evidence about early bear worship in China and among the Ainu culture as well (see Iomante). Korean people in their mythology identify the bear as their ancestor and symbolic animal. According to the Korean legend, a god imposed a difficult test on a she-bear, and when she passed it the god turned her into a woman and married her.
In addition, the Proto-Indo-European word for bear, *h₂ŕ̥tḱos (ancestral to the Greek arktos, Latin ursus, Welsh arth (cf. Arthur), Albanian ari, Armenian arj, Sanskrit ṛkṣa, Hittite ḫartagga) seems to have been subject to taboo deformation or replacement in some languages (as was the word for wolf, wlkwos), resulting in the use of numerous unrelated words with meanings like "brown one" (English bruin) and "honey-eater" (Slavic medved). Thus some Indo-European language groups do not share the same PIE root. The theory of the bear taboo is taught to almost all beginning students of Indo-European and historical linguistics; the putative original PIE word for bear is itself descriptive, because a cognate word in Sanskrit is rakṣas, meaning "harm, injury".
The saddled "bear of St. Corbinian" the emblem of Freising, here incorporated in the arms of Pope Benedict
Legends of saints taming bears are common in the Alpine zone. In the arms of the bishopric of Freising (see illustration) the bear is the dangerous totem animal tamed by St. Corbinian and made to carry his civilised baggage over the mountains. A bear also features prominently in the legend of St. Romedius, who is also said to have tamed one of these animals and had the same bear carry him from his hermitage in the mountains to the city of Trento.
Coat of Arms of the Abbey of Saint Gall
Similar stories are told of Saint Gall and Saint Columbanus.
This recurrent motif was used by the Church as a symbol of the victory of Christianity over Paganism, represented by the fiery.
"The Three Bears", Arthur Rackham's illustration to English Fairy Tales, by Flora Annie Steel
Bears are a popular feature of many children's stories including Goldilocks and the Three Bears, the Berenstein Bears, and Winnie the Pooh.
The constellations Ursa Major and Ursa Minor represent bears.
Symbolic use
The Russian bear is a common National personification for Russia (as well as the Soviet Union) and even Germany. The brown bear is Finland's national animal.
The flag of California
In the United States, the black bear is the state animal of Louisiana, New Mexico, and West Virginia; the grizzly bear is the state animal of both Montana and California.
Bears appear in the canting arms of Bern and Berlin.
Also, "bear", "bruin", or specific types of bears are popular nicknames or mascots, e.g. for sports teams (Chicago Bears, California Golden Bears, UCLA Bruins, Boston Bruins); and a bear cub called Misha was mascot of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, USSR. Smokey Bear
Smokey Bear has become a part of American culture since his introduction in 1944. Known to almost all Americans, he and his message, "Only You Can Prevent Forest Fires" (updated in 2001 to "Only You Can Prevent Wildfires") has been a symbol of preserving woodlands. Smokey wears a hat similar to one worn by many U.S. state police officers, giving rise to the CB slang "bear" or "Smokey" for the highway patrol.
Figures of speech
The physical attributes and behaviours of bears are commonly used in figures of speech in English.
In the stock market, a bear market is a period of declining prices. Pessimistic forecasting or negative activity is said to be bearish (due to the stereotypical posture of bears looking downwards), and one who expresses bearish sentiment is a bear. Its opposite is a bull market, and bullish sentiment from bulls.
In gay slang, the term "bear" refers to male individuals who possess physical attributes much like a bear, such as a heavy build, abundant body hair, and commonly facial hair.
A bear hug is typically a tight hug that involves wrapping one's arms around another person, often leaving that person's arms immobile. It was used in the Ronald Reagan political ad "Bear in the woods."
Bear tracking - in the old Western states of the U.S. and to this day in the former Dakota Territory, the expression, "You ain't just a bear trackin'.", is used to mean "You ain't lying" or "That's for sure" or "You're not just blowing smoke". This expression evolved as an outgrowth of the experience pioneer hunters and mountainmen had when tracking bear. Bears often lay down false tracks and are notorious for doubling back on anything tracking them. If you are not following bear tracks, you are not following false trails or leads in your thoughts, words or deeds.
In Korean culture a person is referred to as being "like a bear" when they are stubborn or not sensitive to what is happening around their surroundings. Used as a phrase to call a person "stubborn bear."
The Bible compares King David's "bitter warriors", who fight with such fury that they could overcome many times their number of opponents, with "a bear robbed of her whelps in the field" (2 Samuel 17:8 s:Bible (King James)/2 Samuel#Chapter 17). The term "a bereaved bear" (דב שכול), derived from this Biblical source, is still used in the literary Hebrew of contemporary Israel.
Source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bear
