Bears, Majestic Creatures of the Wild . This medium-sized bear is usually black with a brown muzzle, lacks a shoulder hump, and often has a white patch on the chest. Although black is the predominant color, chocolate and cinnamon brown color phases are also common, which often results in people confusing them with brown bears. Kermode bears are found along the north-central coast of British Co lumbia, and the Yukon Territory, Canada. Black bears have strong, highly curved claws and the profile of the face is convex when compared with the more concave profile of a brown bear.
Black bears vary considerably in size, depending on the quality of the food available.
Males may be from about 20 to 60 percent larger than females. Historically, black bears are thought to have stayed away from open habitat because of the risk of predation by brown bears. Black bears have become established in the tundra of northern Labrador, a region where there are no brown bears. Mating takes place in June, July, and August, and pairs may remain together for only a few hours or for several days. Pregnancy last s about 220 days, and the cubs are born in a maternity den in January and February.