BEARS 



473 



Brown Bear, 



BEARS (Ursidae). 



Bears are so unlike other animals and so like one another that no 

 one has the slightest difficulty in recognising a member of the group 

 when he sees it. They constitute a family of Carnivora — the Ursidcs — 

 and are spread over the greater part of the globe, with the exception of 

 Africa to the south of the Sahara desert, and the Australasian islands. 

 As some of their leading characteristics may be mentioned their large 

 bodily size, clumsy build, shaggy fur, generally uniform coloration, the 

 very short tail, and the application of the whole sole of the foot to the 

 ground in walking. The skull and teeth are likewise very peculiar and 



