What does the Malayan bear eat? Malayan bear - the smallest bear in the world (9 photos)

A miniature but formidable predator. Biruang is the name of the smallest bear in the world. He is also the rarest bear on the planet.

The unusual animal is also called the Malayan or sun bear. And he really is the smallest representative of the bear family. The height of the clubfoot is no more than one and a half meters, but its weight varies from 25 kilograms to 65 kilograms. However, even despite such small dimensions, the biruang is considered one of the most ferocious bears in the world, if not the most aggressive. However, this opinion exists only in Western countries. And in Asia, for example, the sun bear is called not dangerous. Moreover, the bear is tamed and sometimes kept as a pet.

The smallest bears in the world, like dogs, are quite easy to train. And only mother bears protecting their cubs pose a danger to people. It is worth avoiding angry individuals. If the beast is provoked to attack, then they are truly fearless and fight with all their might, not for life or death, trying to defeat the enemy at any cost.

The smallest bears in the world are dart frogs

Sun bears have rather large, sickle-shaped claws. The animals have huge paws with completely bare soles. It is this fact that helps biruangs to climb trees well. Of all the bears, it is the smallest bears in the world who love trees the most. Therefore, they are sometimes also called "basindo nan tenggil", which literally means "one who likes to sit high." Biruangas are predominantly nocturnal animals, so individuals can sleep the whole day or lie on convenient tree branches. At a height, they also build themselves something similar to a nest and, without leaving the “house,” feed on fruits and leaves. It is worth noting an interesting fact - Malayan bears never hibernate.

Sun bears are omnivores. But, as a rule, they feed on earthworms, insects, fruits, shoots and rhizomes of various plants. A distinctive feature of the Biruang is its unusually long tongue. It reaches 20-25 centimeters. This part of the body is very sticky and thin. And she helps the bear get his favorite treat - honey from the hives. Hence another name for the smallest bear in the world – “honey bear”. By the way, the animal does not mind eating not only honey, but also bees. Sometimes biruangs also absorb birds, lizards and small mammals. The powerful jaws of the individuals help to easily bite even coconuts.

Malayan bears are found in southern China, northeast India, Thailand, Myanmar, as well as on the island of Borneo, the Indochina Peninsula and Indonesia.

Biruangs are playing

The miniature bear differs from its relatives not only in its amazingly long tongue. The biruang's fur is stiffer, shorter and smoother. And this is explained by the fact that the animal lives in a fairly warm climate. The color of the sun bear is black, and there is a large light spot on its chest. It looks like a horseshoe and is shaped like the rising sun. And from here came the name of the entire genus of small bears - “Helarctos”. The first part of the word is translated as sun, and the second – bear. All together it turns out to be a sun bear.

Biruangs live up to 25 years, but this is in captivity. But in the wild, the smallest bear in the world, its life and habits have been studied quite poorly. However, we can say with confidence that under human care these animals live much longer.

Truly a clubfoot!

Teddy bear is a phrase that everyone knows from childhood, biruang makes it true. Scientists have noted the interesting gait of the Malayan bear. All four paws turn inward when walking. But the sun bear's vision is not so good. But poor vision is compensated by an excellent sense of smell and hearing.

Enemies of the little bear

The main enemy of the sun bear has always been and remains man. Biruangs easily defeat almost any predator. They, as they said, are very strong in battle, so the neighbors in the forest prefer to give the baby a wide berth. But sometimes conflicts with leopards and tigers still occur. The largest predators try to grab their opponent by the throat. But bears can avoid such an attack, because they have very loose skin on their necks, which allows the biruang to “slip out” from the mouth of a leopard or tiger and strike back with a crushing blow.

But leaving a person is not so easy. Humans have already caused almost irreparable damage to the population of the world's smallest bears. Five thousand years ago, Chinese people used bear bile for medicinal purposes - to treat bacterial infections. Now the situation has not changed. But on the island of Borneo, animal fur is used to sew hats. Trophy hunting for the Malayan bear is also popular among people. Farmers shoot the animal for the simple reason that the clubfoot is capable of causing damage to coconut and banana plantations. It is for these reasons that biruangs are now the rarest species of bear. They are listed in the International Red Book. However, the number of Malayan bears is only decreasing every year.

Touching predator

One way or another, Malayan bears can be called shy and timid. They usually prefer to avoid a person, not show themselves to him, and generally stay away from him. But in Asia, a tamed biruang is not a rare sight. The animal can calmly walk around the owner’s house without supervision and play with interest with the children. By the way, Malayan bears are very smart. There is a story about a certain bear who once surprised his owners. The animal did not eat the rice offered to him, but scattered it on the ground, sat down next to him and began to wait for something. A little later, the birds came to dine on rice, and the cunning Biruang dined on the birds.

Curiously, the mating season of the biruang is not limited to one season. Mating of the smallest bears in the world can occur throughout the year. After a 95-day pregnancy, the female gives birth to 1-2 cubs, sometimes three. Blind, naked and helpless newborns weigh approximately 300 grams. They are under the protection of their mother for up to 2.5 years.
Subscribe to our channel in Yandex.Zen

The Malayan biruang bear is another representative of the bear family. But for some reason the local population calls him “bear-dog”. The clubfoot received this “nickname” for its relatively small size.

The Malayan bear is also called the biruang, sometimes the sun bear or the honey bear. Biruang is a carnivorous mammal, it belongs to the genus of Malayan bears.

Biruang - Malayan bear

What does biruang look like?

The size of these animals, compared to their own, is very small. The body length is 120–150 centimeters, and an adult weighs about 60 kilograms.

The biruang has a rather long body. His ears are small and round in shape. On the wide muzzle there are small and poorly seeing eyes. But the Malayan's lack of vision is compensated by excellent hearing and sense of smell.

Malayan bears walk on strong paws with long and strong claws. A special feature of this bear is its unusually long tongue. Why does the bear need it? With this “device”, the biruang easily extracts honey by penetrating the hives.

The fur is short and thick, it has water-repellent properties. The bear's color is black, with light spots sometimes visible on the sides, face and chest.

Where do biruangs - Malayan bears - live?

These representatives of the Malayan bear genus can be found on the island of Borneo (which is divided between three states), in the northeastern part of India, Thailand and Indonesia.

Lifestyle of the Malayan bear

Biruangs, among the bear family, are the biggest lovers of an arboreal lifestyle, which is why they have long curved claws and powerful paws. They live in the mountains and on the plains of forests located in the tropics and subtropics.

Climbing trees is a real strength of the Biruang.

The arboreal lifestyle allows them to find food all year round, while also escaping from enemies. These animals have a fairly calm disposition, but only until someone becomes too annoying for them. In this case, biruangs can become aggressive. They live solitary lives, except for female bears with young animals.

In captivity, these bears can live up to 24 years, but in the wild this period is much shorter.

What do biruangs eat?

These bears are omnivores. They are equally well saturated with both plant and animal foods. Biruangs feed on berries, bananas, palm sprouts, termites, wild bees, lizards, birds and small mammals. Honey is a special treat for them.

Doesn't it look a bit like a Shar Pei? This extra skin is an effective remedy against the jaws of tigers and lions.

How do Malayan bears breed their offspring?

The mating season, due to the warm climate of the habitats, is observed all year round: it can occur at absolutely any time of the year. For one to two weeks, males court females, then mating occurs. Some time passes from the moment of mating to the onset of pregnancy; this is typical for all representatives of the bear family.

The gestation period for the cubs lasts about 95 days. One female bear gives birth to 1 – 2 biruang babies. The birth takes place in a secluded place prepared in advance by the bear, resembling a large nest in shape. Little biruangs are born completely helpless, they are blind and weigh only 300 grams. But little creatures begin to develop very quickly and already at three months of age they are running and playing. Until the age of four months, the babies feed on mother bear milk, and they live with their mother until they are approximately two years old.

Puberty in young animals occurs at 3–5 years.

The Malayan bear (or biruang) is a member of the Bear family. The name comes from the Greek word hela, meaning "sun". The reason for this “name” was a milky white or light beige spot on the animal’s chest, reminiscent of a sunrise. The word arcto translates as "bear". Therefore, helarctos is translated as “sun bear”.

The local population also calls it a bear-dog due to the small size of the animal.

The Malayan bear also has another “name” - biruang. This is a predator belonging to the genus Malayan bears.

External data

Today we will introduce you to the smallest representative of the entire family, whose “name” is biruang (“sun bear”). The Malayan bear has an elongated, somewhat awkward body, not exceeding 1.5 m in length, its height at the withers is no more than 70 cm, and its weight is about 65 kg. Males are larger than females by about 10-20%.

The Malayan bear is a stocky animal with a short and wide muzzle. The ears are round and small in size. The tall limbs end in huge paws. They are very strong, the soles are completely bare. The claws are long, curved, and very sharp. The long and sticky tongue probably helps the animal extract honey and destroy termite mounds.

Of all the species, the Malayan bear has the largest fangs. The teeth of these animals easily tear meat, but since biruangs are not very carnivorous, they use their fangs as a weapon or as a tool for chewing wood to get the desired insects.

Coat and color

The Malayan bear has a beautiful coat. The fur is short, resinous black. Only the sides of the muzzle and the spot on the chest are colored grayish-yellow or orange. It is believed that this spot is probably used to intimidate competitors. Sometimes the limbs are covered with light fur.

Habitat

The Malayan bear is an animal that leads a solitary lifestyle. The only exceptions are mothers with cubs.

Biruang is distributed over a vast territory - from northern India, southern China, Thailand, to Indonesia.

Lifestyle

The Malayan bear is a predator that lives in the subtropical and tropical forests and mountains of southeast Asia. Biruang is an excellent tree climber. It is a nocturnal animal, often sleeping during the day on branches and in nests it has built. Here, on the trees, he feasts on fruits and leaves. Unlike its northern counterparts, it does not hibernate. In captivity, this bear lives up to 24 years.

Despite its size, this small but strong Malayan bear is a formidable predator. Even the tiger tries to avoid meeting him as much as possible.

Nutrition

The Malayan bear (biruang) is an omnivore. Its diet consists of fruits, earthworms, bees (wild), termites and other insects, small mammals, birds, and lizards.

Local residents often complain that the biruang damages palm trees - it eats their tender shoots and bananas. Cocoa plantations often suffer from the attacks of these animals.

The Malayan bear has jaws so strong that it can easily open coconuts.

With strong paws and very long (up to 15 cm) claws, it easily destroys termite mounds and bee hives. In this way he gets to the honey, as well as to the bee larvae.

The Malayan bear is the rarest species in its family. A distinctive feature of this animal is its sticky and long tongue, which helps to easily remove termites and insects from the bark of trees from nests.

Features of behavior

Biruang is the most “arboreal” species of bear. Thanks to powerful claws on four paws, they are excellent at climbing trees.

The Malayan bear is most active at night. These spend most of their lives in tree branches. Here, at a height of 2-7 m, they build durable floorings (nests), on which they rest, sleep, and also sunbathe.

The life of these animals in natural conditions is still little studied. Experts assure that this bear is quite aggressive, and even to support their words, they give examples of attacks on people with a very sad outcome.

On the mainland this bear is not considered dangerous. Residents are confident that the attacks in question could only have been carried out by mother bears protecting their offspring.

In fact, Malayan bears are timid and harmless creatures when not disturbed. Even females with cubs avoid meeting humans in every possible way.

In their homeland, the biruang is often kept in captivity as a kind and funny animal, and children are allowed to play with it.

Reproduction

The mating season of Malayan bears lasts from two to seven days. At this time, the female and male behave very characteristically. They hug, playfully wrestle and jump.

Mating can occur at any time of the year, which suggests that there is no specific mating season. At the Berlin Zoo, the biruanga bear gave birth twice a year - in April and August. But this is rather the exception than the rule.

On average, pregnancy lasts 95 days, but there are frequent cases of delayed penetration of the fertilized egg. For example, at the Fort Worth Zoo, three pregnancies of one female bear lasted 174, 228 and 240 days.

Offspring

Usually the female brings 1-2, much less often 3 cubs. As a rule, birth occurs in a secluded place, in a previously prepared nest. Babies are born completely helpless, blind, naked and weighing no more than 300 grams.

From this moment on, the life and physical development of the cubs depend entirely on the mother. Puppies need external stimulation of their excretory systems. This is necessary for normal cleansing of the intestines and bladder. This procedure is required for babies up to 2 months. In nature, this work is performed by a female bear, carefully licking her cubs. In captivity, cubs are washed several times a day.

Babies develop rapidly. By the age of three months, they run independently (fast), play and eat additional food with their mother. Mother's milk is present in their diet for up to four months.

The skin of newborn babies is initially colored black and gray. The mark on the chest and muzzle are off-white. Babies' eyes open by the 25th day, but they gain full vision only by the 50th day. Around this time, puppies begin to hear. The first primary canines erupt at the 7th month, and a full set of teeth is formed by 18 months.

The mother teaches the cubs what to eat and where this food can be found. Until about 2.5 years old, the cubs remain with their mother.

Benefits and harms for humans

Despite the fact that the number of Malayan bears is declining every year, people continue to mercilessly destroy them. Many hunt them for sport and also kill them for sale.

Some parts of the biruang's body are used in medicine. This practice began in China around 3500 BC. e., and the first mention of the use of the biruang gall bladder dates back to the 7th century AD. e. successfully used in Chinese medicine. It is used to treat bacterial infections and inflammation. There is an opinion that the bear's gall bladder (remedies from it) can increase the potency of men.

Hats are made from biruanga fur. In some areas, bears play an extremely important role in dispersing plant seeds.

Unfortunately, the Malayan bear is capable of causing irreparable damage to coconut and banana plantations.

Population

Today the Malayan bear (biruang) is listed in the Red Book. Experts find it difficult to name the exact number of these animals living in natural conditions, but there is evidence of a significant annual decrease in their numbers.

The destruction of animal habitats plays a huge role in this process. This forces the Biruang to live in very small and often isolated territories.

The Malayan bear is the smallest bear in the world. The weight of an adult individual usually does not exceed 65 kg, and the height is no more than 1.5 meters. However, its appearance is deceiving; the fact is that the Malayan bear is considered one of the most aggressive bears in the world.

The Malayan bear is fearless in a fight with an enemy and does everything to win. This is especially true for females with children. However, in Asian countries it is considered peaceful and is even kept as a pet and called “bear-dog”.



It lives in Thailand, Myanmar, Vietnam, Laos, southern China, northeastern India and Indonesia.

Thanks to the warm climate, the Malayan bear has developed smooth, short, water-repellent black fur. He has good hearing and smell, but his vision leaves much to be desired. In captivity, it lives for about 25 years.

The main enemies are tigers and leopards. To fight them, the Malayan bear has a special device: loose skin on the neck. If a predator bites him in the neck area, such skin makes it easy to turn around and unexpectedly bite the enemy.

The world's smallest bear mainly feeds on fruits, shoots, insects, worms and honey, and its diet may sometimes include birds, lizards and small mammals. It is helped in obtaining food by a long, sticky tongue (20-25 cm) and mobile lips. In addition, claws up to 15 cm long easily destroy beehives and termite mounds, and powerful jaws split coconuts. With the help of long claws it easily climbs trees.

Despite the fact that the Malayan bear is listed in the Red Book, its population is declining every year. This is due to bear hunting, which is carried out by farmers and simply those who like to hunt. In addition, the bile of the Malayan bear has been used in traditional Chinese medicine since ancient times and to this day.

Malayan bear

On the islands of Indonesia, India, Thailand and Burma, in subtropical and tropical forests, the amazing Malayan biruang bear (Helarctos malayanus Raffles) lives. He is the smallest representative of clubfoot on the planet. The height of adult individuals at the withers does not exceed 70 cm. The elongated, awkward body makes the appearance of the biruang unusual. The miniature stature of this rare animal does not prevent it from being the most aggressive of bears.

Biruang body

On the face there is a “mask” of grayish-yellow or orange color. Thanks to the funny pattern on the chest, reminiscent of the rising sun, this bear is also called the “sun bear”.

The body length of the biruang, covered with pitch-black thick fur, reaches an average of 1 m 20 cm (maximum 1.5 m). Bears weigh up to 65 kg for males and up to 50 kg for females. A distinctive feature of the Malayan bear is its surprisingly mobile elongated muzzle and incredibly long (up to 25 cm) tongue, adapted for catching termites and extracting honey from hives. Huge (for such a body) paws are equipped with strong, sharp claws, which helps the sun bear to climb trees and successfully steal bees, as well as feast on leaves and juicy fruits.

Biruang Diet

In general, his diet is very varied. In addition to the above are various worms, insects, lizards, small rodents, mammals and birds. Sometimes the biruang does not disdain the remains of carrion that predators have not eaten. He sleeps, climbing a tree, in a nest he built with his own efforts. Wakeful mainly at night. The sun bear is also unusual in that it does not hibernate in winter - its omnivorous nature promotes an active lifestyle all year round.

Mating season of Malayan bears

It is curious that the mating season of Malayan bears is not limited to the season, and mating can occur throughout the year. Usually, after a 95-day pregnancy, a female gives birth to 1-2, less often - 3 cubs. Newborn cubs weigh only about 300 grams, naked, blind and absolutely helpless. The female prepares in advance for their birth and builds a nest in a secluded place on the ground. The cubs remain under the protection of their mother for 1.5 to 2.5 years.

It is surprising that in captivity biruangs live longer than in nature, and are quite friendly towards the people who feed them. Biruang is listed in the International Red Book, but despite this, the number of sun bears is declining every year. Poachers exterminate them, harvesting their internal organs and fur for sale. There is hope to partially replenish the number of Malayan bears by keeping them in zoos and nature reserves.

Svetlana Larina, Samogo.Net