Sun bear
Helarctos malayanus (Raffles, 1822)
The sun bear (Helarctos malayanus) is a mammal in the bear family Ursidae, order Carnivora. It is a large, nocturnal and terrestrial carnivore of forest habitat, with an adult body mass of 46.5 kg.
Quick facts about the sun bear
The IUCN Red List classifies the sun bear as Vulnerable (VU) in its global assessment, which is a threatened category. Gestation lasts 98 days, litter size is 1.1 young, sexual maturity comes at 6.5 years, and lifespan is 31 years, with values up to 35.9 years reported.
- Weight
- 46.5 kgsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Height
- 70 cmsrc for Height
- Lifespan
- 31 years – 35.9 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Carnivoresrc for Diet
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- forestsrc for Habitat
- Gestation
- 96 days – 98.3 dayssrc for Gestation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 1.1src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 6.5 yearssrc for Age at maturity
- Active
- At night (nocturnal)src for Active
- Lifestyle
- Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
- Conservation status
- Vulnerable (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
How big is the sun bear?
Photos of the sun bear
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Where does the sun bear live?
Not recorded
What is the sun bear?
The sun bear (Helarctos malayanus) is a bear species in the family Ursidae found in the tropical forests of Southeast Asia. It is the only species in the genus Helarctos and the smallest bear species, 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 short and jet black, but can vary from grey to red. The sun bear gets its name from its characteristic orange to cream-coloured chest patch.
The sun bear's unique morphology with inward-turned front feet, flattened chest, powerful forelimbs with large claws suggests adaptations for climbing, and it is an excellent climber and the most arboreal of all bears. It sunbathes or sleeps in trees 2 to 7 m (6 ft 7 in to 23 ft 0 in) above the ground. It is mainly active during the day, though nocturnality might be more common in areas frequented by humans. It tends to remain solitary, but sometimes occur in pairs such as a mother and her cub. It does not hibernate, possibly because food resources are available the whole year throughout its range. It is an omnivore, and its diet includes 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. It breeds 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 bounded by Northeast India to the north then south to southeast through Bangladesh, mainland Southeast Asia, Brunei and Indonesia. These bears are threatened by heavy deforestation and poaching 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% since the 1990s. It is listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List.
From the Wikipedia article “Sun bear” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sun_bear&oldid=1383663388), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the sun bear endangered?
The sun bear is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List: it faces a high risk of extinction in the wild.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Vulnerable species.
How is the sun bear classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classMammalia
- orderCarnivora
- familyUrsidae
- genusHelarctos
- SpeciesHelarctos malayanus (Raffles, 1822)
Synonyms Ursus malayanus
Other names and names in other languages (51)
- Honey bearEnglish
- Malayan bearEnglish
- Malayan bearEnglish
- Malayan sun bearEnglish
- Malayan sun bearEnglish
- Malayan sun bearEnglish
- Malaysian bearEnglish
- SonbeerAfrikaans
- Maleisiese BeerAfrikaans
- دب الشمسArabic
- Cavawclt
- medvěd malajskýCzech
- MalajbjørnDanish
- MalaienbärGerman
- Αρκούδα του μελιού (της Μαλαισίας)Greek
- Oso de SolSpanish
- Oso MalayoSpanish
- MalaikaruEstonian
- pikkukarhuFinnish
- BruanFrench
- Ours des cocotiersFrench
- Ours MalaisFrench
- דוב מלאיHebrew
- maláj medveHungarian
- Beruang MaduIndonesian
- Orso maleseItalian
- Orso del soleItalian
- マレーグマJapanese
- ខ្លាឃ្មុំតូចKhmer
- 말레이곰Korean
- Belufiëkyi
- BeruangMalay
- Buangmxr
- MalayabjørnNorwegian Bokmål
- Maleise BeerDutch
- Bərəbiəngnrm
- Biruang malajskiPolish
- Urso-malaioPortuguese
- БируангRussian
- Малайский медведьRussian
- Bəlweəngsnv
- MalajbjörnSwedish
- หมีคนThai
- หมีหมาThai
- Güneş AyısıTurkish
- Ведмідь малайськийUkrainian
- Gấu ChóVietnamese
- Kuβingzbc
- Kuβɪngzbe
- Kəbɪngzbw
- 馬來熊Chinese
Relatives of the sun bear
Other species in the same family Ursidae.
Polar bear
Ursus maritimus
Giant panda
Ailuropoda melanoleuca
Brown bear
Ursus arctos
American black bear
Ursus americanus
Asian black bear
Ursus thibetanus
Sloth bear
Melursus ursinus
CompareSun bear vs Polar bearSun bear vs Giant pandaSun bear vs Brown bearSun bear vs American black bear
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
What kind of animal is the sun bear?
The sun bear is a mammal in the bear family Ursidae, within the order Carnivora.
How heavy is a sun bear?
An adult Sun bear has a body mass of 46.5 kg, which places it in the large size class.
What does the sun bear eat?
The sun bear is a carnivore.
Is the sun bear endangered?
The sun bear is listed as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List, which is a threatened category.
How long does a sun bear live?
The sun bear has a lifespan of 31 years, and sources report values up to 35.9 years.
How many young does a sun bear have?
The sun bear has a litter size of 1.1 young, after a gestation period of 98 days.
Is the sun bear active at night?
Yes, the sun bear is nocturnal and lives on the ground in forest habitat.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals · CC0 1.0 · 1.0
Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1 - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Sun bear (Helarctos malayanus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/sun-bear
“Sun bear (Helarctos malayanus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/sun-bear.
@misc{sun_bear_2026,
title = {Sun bear (Helarctos malayanus)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/sun-bear},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}