Bears have fascinated people since ancient times. The relationship between bears and humans dates back thousands of years, during which time we have also competed with bears for shelter and food. In modern times, bears have come under pressure through encroachment on their habitats, climate change, and illegal trade in their body parts, including the Asian bile bear market. The IUCN lists six bears as vulnerable or endangered, and even the least concern species, such as the brown bear, are at risk of extirpation in certain countries. The poaching and international trade of these most threatened populations are prohibited, but still ongoing. Covering all bears species worldwide, this beautifully illustrated volume brings together the contributions of 200 international bear experts on the ecology, conservation status, and management of the Ursidae family. It reveals the fascinating long history of interactions between humans and bears and the threats affecting these charismatic species.

Of the status of bear species by distribution / Christopher Servheen -- An overview of bear conservation planning and implementation / Bernard Peyton, Christopher Servheen, and Stephen Herrero -- Genetics of the bears of the world / Lisette Waits, David Paetkau, and Curtis Strobeck -- The trade in bears and bear parts / Christopher Servheen -- Brown bear conservation action plan for North America (Ursus arctos). Alaska / Sterling D. Miller and John Schoen. Canada / Bruce McLellan and Vivian Banci. United States: grizzly bear in the Lower 48 / Christopher Servheen -- Brown bear conservation action plan for Europe (Ursus arctos). Austria / Georg Rauer. Bulgaria / Nikolai Spassov and G. Spiridonov. Finland / Erik S. Nyholm and Kai-Eerik Nyholm. France / Jean Jacques Camarra. Greece / George Mertzanis. Italy (Abruzzo) / Giorgio Boscagli. Italy (Trentino) / Fabio Osti. Norway / Ole Jakob Sørensen, Jon E. Swenson, and Tor Kvam. Poland / Witold Frackowiak, Roman Gula, and Kajetan Perzanowski. Romania / Ovidiu Ionescu. Slovakia / Pavel Hell and Slavomir Find'o. Spain: eastern and western Cantabria. Eastern Cantabrian subpopulation / Anthony P. Clevenger and Francisco J. Purroy. Western Cantabrian subpopulation / Javier Naves Cienfuegos and Carlos Nores Quesada. Sweden / Jon E. Swenson, Finn Sandegren, Anders Bjärvall, Robert Franzén, Arne Söderberg, and Petter Wabakken. Former Yugoslavia / Djuro Huber and Miha Adamic -- Brown bear conservation action plan for Asia (Ursus arctos). China: Heilonjiang black and brown bears / Cheng Jizhen. India / S. Sathyakumar. Japan: Hokkaido / Tsutomu Mano and Joseph Moll. Mongolia: Gobi bear / Thomas McCarthy. Russia / Igor Chestin -- American black bear conservation action plan (Ursus americanus) / Michael R. Pelton, Alex B. Coley, Thomas H. Eason, Diana L. Doan Martinez, Joel A. Pederson, Frank T. van Manem and Keith M. Weaver -- Spectacled bear conservation action plan (Tremarctos ornatus) / Bernard Peyton. Bolivia / Damián I. Rumiz and Jorge Salazar. Colombia / Jorge Orejuela and Jeffrey P. Jorgenson. Ecuador / Luis Suárez. Perú / Bernard Peyton, coordinator. Venezuela / Edgard Yerena, coordinator -- Asiatic black bear conservation action plan (Ursus thibetanus). China / Ma Yiqing and Li Xiaomin. India / S. Sathyakumar. Japan / Toshihiro Hazumi. Russia / Igor Chestin and Victor Yudin. Taiwan: Formosan black bear / Ying Wang. Vietnam: black bear and sun bear / Do Dinh Sam -- Sun bear conservation action plan (Helarctos malayanus) / Christopher Servheen. Lao PDR / Richard E. Salter -- Sloth bear conservation action plan (Melursus ursinus) / David L. Garshelis, Anup R. Joshi, James L.D. Smith, and Clifford G. Rice -- Giant panda conservation action plan (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) / Donald G. Read and Jien Gong -- Global status and management of the polar bear (Ursus maritimus) / IUCN/SSC Polar Bear Specialist Group.

One man fights to save an endangered species from extinction.

The Memoirs of a Polar Bear stars three generations of talented writers and performers—who happen to be polar bears The Memoirs of a Polar Bear has in spades what Rivka Galchen hailed in the New Yorker as “Yoko Tawada’s magnificent strangeness”—Tawada is an author like no other. Three generations (grandmother, mother, son) of polar bears are famous as both circus performers and writers in East Germany: they are polar bears who move in human society, stars of the ring and of the literary world. In chapter one, the grandmother matriarch in the Soviet Union accidentally writes a bestselling autobiography. In chapter two, Tosca, her daughter (born in Canada, where her mother had emigrated) moves to the DDR and takes a job in the circus. Her son—the last of their line—is Knut, born in chapter three in a Leipzig zoo but raised by a human keeper in relatively happy circumstances in the Berlin zoo, until his keeper, Matthias, is taken away... Happy or sad, each bear writes a story, enjoying both celebrity and “the intimacy of being alone with my pen.”

Meet one of the most enigmatic animals of the lowland forests. This book provides a wealth of resources and imagery on: • the biology, ecology, and behaviour of sloth bears; • sloth bear habitat and the rising threats to it from human population growth; • the difficult relationship between humans and sloth bears. Written in an engaging and accessible style, this is an essential and inspiring read for both professional ecologists and non-specialist readers interested in the challenges of large carnivore conservation and workable solutions for human-bear coexistence.

This book of photography represents National Geographic's Photo Ark, a major cross-platform initiative and lifelong project by photographer Joel Sartore to make portraits of the world's animals -- especially those that are endangered. His message: to know these animals is to save them. Sartore intends to photograph every animal in captivity in the world. He is circling the globe, visiting zoos and wildlife rescue centers to create studio portraits of 12,000 species, with an emphasis on those facing extinction. He has photographed more than 6,000 already and now, thanks to a multi-year partnership with National Geographic, he may reach his goal. This book showcases his animal portraits: from tiny to mammoth, from the Florida grasshopper sparrow to the greater one-horned rhinoceros. Paired with the prose of veteran wildlife writer Douglas Chadwick, this book presents an argument for saving all the species of our planet.

Take an exciting trip to the rainforest and discover the animal world! Pacjed with full-color photos, this book brings the sights and sounds of the rain forest creatures to life. How animals survive in the rain forest, the future of rain forest animals are explored in detail.

With one-third of known species being threatened with extinction, wildlife conservationists are some of the most important heroes on the planet, and Wildlife Heroes profiles the work of 40 of the leading conservationists and the animals and causes they are committed to saving, such as Belinda Low (zebras), Iain Douglas-Hamilton (elephants), Karen Eckert (sea turtles), S.T. Wong (sun bear), Steve Galster (wildlife trade), and Wangari Maathai (habitat loss). Since we all should have an interest in conservation, there is a chapter providing information on ways people can get involved and make a difference. Chapter introductions are by author Kuki Gallmann, actor Ted Danson, actress Stefanie Powers, Congressman Jay Inslee, and TV personality Jack Hanna.

We've been meeting bears in the wilderness, and in our dreams, since the dawn of human history. Celebrated in art and myth since we began drawing on the walls of caves, they cast a long shadow over our collective subconscious. Wherever bears endure, they are an indicator of the health of their ecosystem. Their decline-some to the edge of extinction-foretells a bigger story: that of our planet's peril. In a series of remarkable journeys, Brian Payton travels the world in search of the eight remaining bear species. Along the way, he confronts poachers in the jungles of Cambodia, witnesses the cruelty of the bear bile trade in China, and delves into the politics of panda sex. From the reclusive spectacled bears of Peru to the man-eating sloth bears of India, Payton captures the power and beauty of these fascinating creatures while exploring their unique place within very different cultures. Vivid characters, exotic landscapes, and deft storytelling make for an unforgettable trek down the braided path of bear and human history.

Combines the latest findings from the field and the laboratory with panel and workshop summaries from a recent international conference.