Their diet consists primarily of leafs and buds from select species of tree, including the leafy cecropia tree. However, unlike other bear species, cubs do not climb trees to escape a threat. Sloths do not shiver when it is cold as their body has only 25% muscle. An animal's natural habitat is of key importance in determining its diet and evolution, since a species' survival depends on what they can get and digest from their environment.It's not only about variety but also about quantity; a sloth must find enough food to fulfill all its nutritional requirements. All five living species are limited to the lowland tropical forests of South and Central America, where they can be found high in the forest canopy sunning, resting, or feeding on leaves. //-->, Carrion (animals they find that are already dead). google_ad_width = 120; All photos used are royalty-free, and credits are included in the Alt tag of each image. Their ears are also floppy and coated in long fur. Sloth bears feed predominantly on termites and ants and employ a well-evolved method to dig them out. This keeps bugs from crawling up the bear's nose while it eats! The mother bear finds a cave or rock cavity to safely give birth, and most litters contain two or three cubs. The nostrils of the muzzle can be closed at will, possibly as an adaptation to the defenses of the termites which make up a large portion of their diet. It is also known as labiated bear. These bears are noisy and busy animals. The sloth bear (Melursusursinus) is a well-known myrmecophagous bear species endemic to the Indian subcontinent. The bears use their long, curved claws to rip open the termite mounds and slurp up the insects. It was named for its ungainly appearance and long, curved claws, but in fact can run faster than a human and is very active and noisy at night. The interesting thing about sloth bears is that they move around geographically depending on the availability of the food that is in season.1 termites… Their diet is similar to that of other insectivores, like anteaters, and they thrive on commercial insectivore feed and fruits. If termites try to crawl into their nose, the bears close their nostrils to keep them out. In fact, the sloth bear’s diet comprises almost entirely of insects. During non-fruiting season, insects constitute 95 percent of a sloth bear's diet. The food items stabilization curve showed that 70 scats in summer, and 80 scats in winter, were required to depict the diet of sloth bear adequately. To find honey or fruit they can climb about 8 metres (26 feet) up a tree and hang from branches. Diet. It is possible that the bear’s arboreal habits and their long claws led to their original misclassification as sloths in the 1700s. So there is not much competition for the bears. Sloth bears have black fur, though some individuals have white markings on their chests. Humans have threatened these bears with extinction, and they need our help. While foraging, both cubs and adults are capable of swiftly climbing trees. Sloth, (suborder Phyllophaga), tree-dwelling mammal noted for its slowness of movement. The ancestors of all carnivorans were meat-eating mammals. Large, thick 3-inch (8-centimeter) claws come in handy for ripping apart termite nests in soil, old logs, or trees. 1997, Bar- The higher proportion of plant food in the diet of sloth bear indicates that it is predominantly vegetarian as indicated in some previous studies (Prater, 1971; Johnsingh, 1986; Baskaran, 1990). The type of food available depends on what season it is and where the bears are living. They can walk at one month old, but will ride on mom’s back for safety and to travel quickly. Wild – Sloth Bears are insectivorous, specializing in termites. Once they mate, their gestation period is nearly nine months long. The bear is often black, but reddish animals have been seen. Most of these bears are nocturnal, and most active at night. In some places the bears’ territories overlap, but Sloth Bears usually get along with their cousins. They do not become fully independent until they are two or three years old. Also unlike other bear species, they rarely feed on mammals of any kind. Diet of the Sloth Bear. Sloth bears’ diet primarily consists of termites and ants. Write CSS OR LESS and hit save. The sloth bear is an opportunistic feeder. Sloths are almost helpless on the ground, but are able to swim. Sloth Bear Facts for Kids. They are also known to climb up trees to get at bee hives. Most bears are opportunistic omnivores; their diets consist of fruits, other vegetative material, and in lesser amounts, mammals, fishes, and insects. Two-toed sloths eat both plants and small animals. The type of food available depends on what season it is and where the bears are living. Sloth Diet. This species feeds primarily on insects, and scientists consider them insectivores. … Sloths are so named because of their very low metabolism and deliberate movements, sloth being related to the word slow. Sloth Bear Diet and Feeding. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});