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Full fossilized skeleton of the giant short-faced bear discovered in the La Brea tar pits, California, USA. Commons

A BEAR OF A BEAR!

Good day everyone!

I am managing to squeeze in this blog in my oh so busy week before my husband and I go to spend time with his parents. I will be a bear of a drive but wonderful when we get there. 

I found some fascinating animals I want to share with you! The first one is a bear. But not just any bear. This one is a bear of a bear, standing 11 feet (3.4 meters) when on it’s hind legs. For comparison a large grizzly bear, when rearing up can be at tall as 6 or 7 feet. A large male polar bear, is 6 to 9 feet. This

Giant short-faced bear in comparison to a 6 ft man. Commons

bear beats even the tallest by 2 feet!

So who is this animal and where does it live that I may avoid its habitat! Well, no humans, or animals for that matter, need worry for this bear, Arctodus sinus, is extinct. Phew! It was a very large member of the short-faced bear genus. Some of you may be familiar with short-faced bears from zoos or if you live in South America. Fossils of this amazing animal have been uncovered from Alaska all the way to central Mexico. 

The giant short-faced bear is estimated to have weighed between 1760 and 2200 lbs (800 to 1000 kg) and stood to 6 feet (1.8 m) tall at the shoulders when on all fours. It has been debated that this carnivore be classified as the largest

Giant short-faced bear next to a labor-toothed cat
 for comparison. Commons 

terrestrial mammal known.

I wonder…when scripture says, “…there were giants in those days”, was it just limited to mankind? By the size of these fossils I say not. Our Creator’s love of variety continues to amaze me.

Until next time, God bless and take care!

Willow Dressel 

References:

Nelson, Vance, Untold Secrets of Planet Earth, Monumental Monsters, Untold Secrets of Planet Earth Publishing Company, Inc. 2017. Pp 46-48.