Bear Cubs
Andean bear cubs are
often born in
twos. Little is known about the reproduction of Andean bears
in
the wild, but it is believed that the mother bears usually give birth
around December or January to one or two cubs, occasionally as many as
4. Andean or spectacled bear cubs have
been seen with their mothers at up to around 13 or 14 months
old.
Newborn bear cubs measure
about 18 cm and they weigh
from 300 to 500g. They open their eyes around 42 days of age,
and
within three months of birth are able to follow their mother.
In times
of danger, or if they tire, they can ride on her back. Mature males
occasionally accompany the family group, but this is unusual.
It is not
known exactly how long Andean bear cubs stay with the mother in the
wild, but we
estimate this period to be around 14 months, having seen the same
female with the same cubs after a 13-month period.
Although Andean bear cubs
are very
cute and look like teddy bears, especially when they are very small,
they are not at all suitable as pets. Their teeth and claws
cause a lot more damage than a teddy bear would... In fact it
is illegal
to
keep a bear cub in Ecuador without special permission from the
government. If you really want a spectacled bear cub of your
own, buy a toy one from Into-The-Wild.org and they will
donate 10% to the Andean Bear Foundation!
All too often in
Ecuador, the mother
bears are shot (illegally) for raiding maize fields. Their
orphaned cubs are found and sometimes sold or kept as pets (again
illegally) in unsuitable conditions. The "cute baby bears"
quickly grow too large to keep around the house. They are
agile
climbers, intelligent and curious. Their attempts to escape
may
result in damaged teeth or claws and cause their captors to chain them
up or keep them in an even smaller space.
In Ecuador, it is the
Andean Bear
Foundation that the Ministry of the Environment asks to rescue orphaned
bear cubs. Whilst we have the cooperation of the Ministry and
the
police in these rescues, we get no state funding. We rely on
your
donations
to finance cub rescues and the subsequent rehabilitation
and liberation of the bears. We are currently in the process
of raising funds to rehabilitate and release Bubu, an orphaned Andean
bear cub who is now nearly a year old.
***If you know of
any
orphaned bear
cubs in Ecuador needing to be rescued, please contact us at
info@andeanbear.org giving as much information as you can and including
a phone number on which we can contact you.*** It is
probably
best not to say too much to the "owner" of the cubs as they may be
moved or killed if the owner knows they are breaking the law by keeping
them. Their captors may believe that they are "saving" the
"poor
baby bears", but if the cubs need to be in captivity at all, they need
to be legally kept somewhere with the knowledge and facilities to care
for them properly. Orphaned bear cubs should NOT just be
released
into the wild without proper rehabilitation - they are unlikely to
survive alone until they are at least around 18 months old, and they
need to learn what to eat.
Orphaned bear cubs in
countries other than Ecuador can be reported to the relevant Ministry
of the Environment.
Andean
Bear Conservation Project: Bear Cubs
Spectacled or Andean bear cubs, reporting orphaned bear cubs, bear cub
rescue
