Some genera have white or buffy crescents or semicircles on the chest. Tremarctos, the spectacled bear of South America, typically has a patch of white hairs encircling each eye. Ailuropoda, the giant panda, has a striking black and white color pattern. The ears are small, rounded, and erect. The soles are hairy in species that are mainly terrestrial but naked in species that climb considerably, such as Ursus malayanus.
All limbs have five digits.
The claws are strong, recurved, and used for tearing and digging. The lips are free from the gums. The skull is massive, and the tympanic bullae are not inflated. The species Ursus ursinus, however, has only 2 upper incisors and a total of 40 teeth. Ursid incisors are not specialized, the canines are elongate, the first 3 premolars are reduced or lost, and the molars have broad, flat, and tubercular crowns.