In its brown color phase, the black bear has been mistaken for the grizzly bear, also called brown bears, but the black bear lacks the characteristic fatty hump on the shoulder found in grizzly bears, has much shorter claws than the grizzly and is considerably smaller. There is a pure white black bear called Spirit Bear or Kermodes Bear found in far western Canada. Black bears are found in forests, mountains and meadows of North America, Canada and parts of Mexico.
Black bears have a heavy rounded body which belies their agility and speed.
They are excellent tree climbers and can reach speeds of 25 miles per hour for short distances. Black bears are omnivorous, meaning that they will eat almost anything, but they are primarily vegetarian, eating nuts, tubers, berries, flowers, shrubs and grasses. But they will also consume animal carcasses, fish, insects, honey, small mammals and elk and moose calves. Adult black bears have few predators other than humans, although brown bears and wolf packs have been known to attack them. Black bear cubs are at risk from male black bears, mountain lions, wolves and other large predators.