It is hard to guess what a Sun bear weights. But we have the answer:
An adult Sun bear (Helarctos malayanus) on average weights 57.04 kg (125.75 lbs).
The Sun bear is from the family Ursidae (genus: Helarctos). It is usually born with about 325 grams (0.72 lbs). They can live for up to 24.75 years. When reaching adult age, they grow up to 1.22 meter (4′ 1″). Usually, Sun bears have 1 babies per litter.
As a reference: An average human weights in at 62 kg (137 lbs) and reaches an average size of 1.65m (5′ 5″). Humans spend 280 days (40 weeks) in the womb of their mother and reach around 75 years of age.
The sun bear (Helarctos malayanus) is a species in the family Ursidae occurring in the tropical forests of Southeast Asia. It is the smallest bear, standing nearly 70 cm (28 in) at the shoulder and weighing 25–65 kg (55–143 lb). It is stockily built, with large paws, strongly curved claws, small rounded ears and a short snout. The fur is generally jet-black, but can vary from grey to red. Sun bears get their name from the characteristic orange to cream coloured chest patch. Its unique morphology—inward-turned front feet, flattened chest, powerful forelimbs with large claws—suggests adaptations for climbing.The most arboreal (tree-living) of all bears, the sun bear is an excellent climber and sunbathes or sleeps in trees 2 to 7 m (6.6 to 23.0 ft) above the ground. It is mainly active during the day, though nocturnality might be more common in areas frequented by humans. Sun bears tend to remain solitary but sometimes occur in pairs (such as a mother and her cub). They do not seem to hibernate, possibly because food resources are available the whole year throughout the range. Omnivores, sun bears have a broad diet including ants, bees, beetles, honey, termites and plant material such as seeds and several kinds of fruits; vertebrates such as birds and deer are also eaten occasionally. They breed throughout the year; individuals become sexually mature at two to four years of age. Litters comprise one or two cubs that remain with their mother for around three years.The range of the sun bear is bound by northeastern India to the north and extends south to southeast through Bangladesh, Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam in mainland Asia to Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia to the south. These bears are threatened by heavy deforestation and illegal hunting for food and the wildlife trade; they are also harmed in conflicts with humans when they enter farmlands, plantations and orchards. The global population is estimated to have declined by 35% over the past three decades. The IUCN has listed this species as Vulnerable.
Animals of the same family as a Sun bear
We found other animals of the Ursidae family:
- Brown bear bringing 196.14 kilos (432.41 lbs) to the scale
- Giant panda bringing 118 kilos (260.15 lbs) to the scale
- American black bear bringing 110.75 kilos (244.16 lbs) to the scale
- Sloth bear bringing 99.45 kilos (219.25 lbs) to the scale
- Polar bear bringing 373.35 kilos (823.09 lbs) to the scale
- Red panda bringing 5.17 kilos (11.4 lbs) to the scale
- Asian black bear bringing 99.81 kilos (220.04 lbs) to the scale
- Spectacled bear bringing 123.09 kilos (271.37 lbs) to the scale
Animals with the same weight as a Sun bear
As a comparison, here are some other animals that weight as much as the Helarctos malayanus:
- Grant’s gazelle with a weight of 55.46 kilos (122.27 lbs)
- Capybara with a weight of 48.14 kilos (106.13 lbs)
- Spotted hyena with a weight of 63.69 kilos (140.41 lbs)
- Alpaca with a weight of 64.9 kilos (143.08 lbs)
- Visayan spotted deer with a weight of 45.8 kilos (100.97 lbs)
- Harbour porpoise with a weight of 52.72 kilos (116.23 lbs)
- Leopard with a weight of 52.4 kilos (115.52 lbs)
- Goat with a weight of 47.14 kilos (103.93 lbs)
- Jentink’s duiker with a weight of 68 kilos (149.91 lbs)
- Pronghorn with a weight of 47.18 kilos (104.01 lbs)
Animals with the same size as a Sun bear
Not that size really matters, but it makes things comparable. So here are a couple of animals that are as big as Sun bear:
- Harnessed bushbuck with a size of 1.25 meter (4′ 2″)
- Saiga antelope with a size of 1.16 meter (3′ 10″)
- Sumatran serow with a size of 1.45 meter (4′ 10″)
- Oribi with a size of 1.16 meter (3′ 10″)
- Baikal seal with a size of 1.27 meter (4′ 3″)
- Abbott’s duiker with a size of 1.18 meter (3′ 11″)
- Philippine warty pig with a size of 1.35 meter (4′ 6″)
- Bharal with a size of 1.3 meter (4′ 4″)
- Common wombat with a size of 98.6 cm (3′ 3″)
- Philippine deer with a size of 1.26 meter (4′ 2″)
Animals with the same litter size as a Sun bear
Here is a list of animals that have the same number of babies per litter (1) as a Sun bear:
- Lesser tree mouse
- Greater Asiatic yellow bat
- Siamang
- African palm civet
- Mashona mole-rat
- Serotine bat
- Pygmy ringtail possum
- Spectacled bear
- Melck’s house bat
- Water chevrotain
Animals with the same life expectancy as a Sun bear
Completely different animals, but becoming as old as a Sun bear:
- South Asian river dolphin with an average maximal age of 28 years
- Cotton-top tamarin with an average maximal age of 23.08 years
- Lesser horseshoe bat with an average maximal age of 21 years
- Mantled guereza with an average maximal age of 24.5 years
- Moose with an average maximal age of 27 years
- Mountain zebra with an average maximal age of 24 years
- Arabian oryx with an average maximal age of 20 years
- Greater mouse-eared bat with an average maximal age of 22 years
- Galápagos fur seal with an average maximal age of 22 years
- Hartebeest with an average maximal age of 20 years