Once widespread across northern South America, Spectacled Bears are now IUCN-listed as Vulnerable and almost only found in cloud forest. Credit: Lou Jost.
Exciting news has reached us from our partner Naturaleza y Cultura Peru (NCP) in the cloud forest of northern Peru, with a camera trap filming Spectacled Bear (Tremarctos ornatus) cubs at one of their private conservation areas (ACPs).
A wonderful video of two young Spectacled Bear cubs was recently sent in by our partner NCP. Set up in 2003, NCP have been creating and expanding private and community reserves in the northern Andes region of Peru. This region is home to cloud forest and páramo grassland: a very special ecosystem where you can see many unique and threatened plants and animals. These include giant rosette plants, the Andean Condor (Vultur gryphus) – the longest winged raptor on Earth – and, if you are very fortunate, the Spectacled Bear.
Camera trap footage from Naturaleza y Cultura Peru (NCP) showing two young Spectacled Bear cubs.
The only bear native to South America, Spectacled Bears are almost entirely restricted to the Andes Mountains, occupying a narrow band of habitat just 200-650 km wide, from Venezuela to Paraguay. Once present in a wide range of habitat types, from scrub deserts to dry forests, these bears are now almost entirely found in cloud forest. They are classified as Vulnerable by the IUCN, having undergone largescale population declines due to habitat loss and poaching for the illegal wildlife trade.
With support from WLT, our partner NCP are safeguarding habitat for the Spectacled Bear and many other species, including the Critically Endangered Yellow-tailed Woolly Monkey (Lagothrix flavicauda). This video of two Spectacled Bear cubs is a small glimpse into the incredible things that can be achieved from collaborative action. To learn more about NCP, click here.