English: Sloth bear; Labiated bear.
Region: Indian subcontinent.
Ecology: vulnerable, because of habitat loss and degradation.
ZoologyThis bear is a myrmecophagous bear species. It feeds on fruits, ants and termites. It has a long lower lip and palate used for sucking up insects. It has a long, shaggy fur, a mane around the face, and long, sickle-shaped claws. It is lankier than brown and Asian black bears. It shares features of insectivorous mammals and evolved during the Pleistocene from the ancestral brown bear through divergent evolution.