Black Bear

Black bear, Ursus americanus

Black bears are the smallest and most common bear species in North America, and by far the most commonly found bear in North American late Pleistocene deposits. They are extremely adaptable and occupy a diverse range of climates and habitats. Although these bears continued to occupy much of North America, including the midwest, well into recent times, increasing human populations over the past several centuries, and increasingly negative bear-human interactions, have drastically reduced the availability of acceptable habitats. Currently they are found in the less settled, forested regions of the U.S., particularly in the mountainous regions of the western states and the Appalachian states, as well as through most of Canada and even into northern Mexico. These relatively unagressive bears are omnivorous with a heavy reliance on plant foods. 

American Black Bear

American Black Bear. By Alan D. Wilson (Nature's Pics online) [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.

Order: 
Carnivora (Dogs, Cats, Bears, etc.)
Family: 
Ursidae (Bears)
Statistics: 

Length: 1.2-1.9 m (4-6.2 ft)

Shoulder Height: 0.7-1.0 m (2.3-3.3 ft)

Weight: males 60-225 kg (130-500 lb); females 40-150 kg (90-330 lb)

Macdonald 2006

Status: 
Extirpated