Tiger and Asiatic Black Bear interreactions

[brobear]

www.kuenselonline.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=13949http://bigcatrescue.orghttp://bigcatrescue.org/himalayan-bear-killed-by-tiger/
Himalayan bear killed by tigerIs it effect of climate change on habitat?11 November, 2009 – In the first recorded incident of its kind in Bhutan, a Himalayan black bear was killed and eaten by a royal Bengal tiger in the Jigme Dorji national park.The carcass of the bear, with only its head, skin and paws remaining, was discovered by a team of foresters in Domenda, two days walk from Dodena in Thimphu, on November 7 at an altitude of 4,079 m. The kill has thrown up several questions on tigers being found at such high altitudes in winter, the relationship between bears and tigers in Bhutan’s wild and the implications of the tiger’s presence on the snow leopard habitat.“It’s a confirmed kill by a royal Bengal tiger, since there are canine puncture marks on the bear’s throat and spine, as well as tiger claw marks lacerating the bears face and tiger pug marks in the area,” said Phub Tshering, the JDNP park beat officer, who discovered the carcass. He said that there were also signs of struggle between the bear and the tiger with rhododendrons bushes uprooted and claw marks on trees.“Usually the Himalayan black bear is a powerful foe for any tiger and they avoid each other, but here the bear seems to be a juvenile at 2-3 years and hence did not have the muscle and fighting abilities it gets by the time it reaches its adult age of 5 years,” said Dr Sonam Wangyel, the chief forestry officer and wildlife biologist. He said that it was likely that the two animals met accidentally. Phub Tshering said that some people, who were on tsam in the area, said that they had seen the same bear feeding on berries in late October. They also noticed tiger pug marks in the same area.“We have, for the last three years, started noting multiple signs of the presence of tigers in such high altitude areas, ” said Phub Tshering.Dr Sonam Wangyel said that, though there was no conclusive proof, it is possible that due to climate change the tree line was being pushed higher giving cover to the tiger. “This may also be due to shrinking and disturbed habitat at lower altitudes and hence the mountains may be the only undisturbed areas for the tiger,” he said. However, the real impact of tigers moving higher could be on the snow leopard, whose own snowline habitat could be shrinking. He said that clear scientific evidence was needed to establish the above hypothesis.The incident has also given a peek into the relationship between the Himalayan black bear and the royal Bengal tiger.In a camera trap set up in Nabji in 2006, it was found that a bull killed by a tiger was also being fed on by a bear at alternate intervals. “One day, the bear took away the whole carcass and the camera captured a bewildered look on the face of the tiger when it came back to feed again. The bear could be benefiting from the tigers kills,” said Dr Sonam. He said in the wild carnivores would try to eliminate competition and the bear killed may have been a potential competitor. “Though it happens, this is rare incident since the tiger usually goes after smaller, less aggressive and weaker prey,” he said.He also said that it was possible that tigers would be coming to these heights to cross into other valleys and that more of them were being detected due to better detection devices.Old data show that around 115-150 tigers are found in Bhutan on the basis of sightings.

[brobear]

a-z-animals.com/animals/asian-black-bear/

Asiatic Black Bear Predators and Threats
The large size and ferocious nature of the Asiatic Black Bear has ensured that they have very few (if any) natural predators throughout their historically vast natural range. Tigers are the main predators of Asiatic Black Bears throughout Asia with the small cubs being particularly vulnerable to predation despite the fierce-some protection provided by the mother. Asiatic Black Bears are also more vulnerable in areas where their natural range overlaps those of other bears including Brown Bears in Russia and they are also threatened by packs of Wolves in some parts of their natural range. People however, have been and still remain, the biggest threat to the world's Asiatic Black Bear population as they are severely affected by the loss of their natural habitats to deforestation to either clear land for agriculture or increase the size of growing human settlements. They are also severely threatened by the hunting of them for their body parts that are highly prized in traditional medicines and despite the ban of their hunting in all countries with the exception of Japan, the trade still continues throughout their natural range today.

animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/accounts/Ursus_thibetanus/

[brobear]

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asian_black_bear#Interspecific_predatory_relationships



Asian black bears may be occasionally attacked by tigers and brown bears, although leopards, and packs of wolves and dholes can also be threats. Eurasian lynxes are a potential predator of cubs. Black bears usually dominate Amur leopards in physical confrontations in heavily vegetated areas, while leopards are uppermost in open areas, though the outcome of such encounters is largely dependent on the size of the individual animals. Leopards have been known to prey on cubs younger than two years old.

The Asian black bear's range overlaps with that of sloth bears in central and southern India, sun bears in Southeast Asia and brown bears in the southern part of the Russian Far East.Ussuri brown bears may attack black bears, though Himalayan brown bears seem to be intimidated by the black species in direct encounters.They will eat the fruit dropped by black bears from trees, as they themselves are too large and cumbersome to climb.

Tigers will occasionally prey on black bears. Russian hunters may occasionally find black bear carcasses showing evidence of tiger predation, and their remains may occur in tiger scats. If they manage to escape a tiger, black bears will attempt to rush up a tree and wait for the tiger to leave, though some tigers will pretend to leave, and wait for the bear to descend. One Manchurian tiger was reported to have lured an Asiatic black bear by imitating the species' mating call.Tigers regularly prey on young bears but adult bears are occasionally taken as well. Black bears are usually safe from tiger attacks once they reach five years of age.Although black bears prefer to avoid tigers, they can be extremely tenacious when attacked: Jim Corbett observed a fight between a tiger and the largest black bear he had ever seen, which resulted in the bear managing to chase off the tiger, despite having half its nose and scalp torn off. However, black bears may be less vulnerable than brown bears to tiger predation, due to their habit of living in hollows or in close set rocks, thus making them harder to pursue. At least one fatal attack on a juvenile bear has been recorded in Jigme Dorji National Park, as Bhutan's tiger populations have begun to colonise higher altitude areas. Black bears may steal tiger kills: Jim Corbett twice saw black bears carry off tiger kills when the latter was absent.

However, larger black bears tend to dominate adult tigers, especially when the bear enters the tiger's territory.

[brobear]

siberiantiger1.blogspot.com/2010/04/interspecific-predatory-relationships.html

Asian Black Bears and Ussuri Brown Bears constitute 5-8% of the Siberian tiger's diet. The brown bear's input is estimated to be 1-1.5%. Certain tigers have been reported to imitate the calls of Asiatic black bears to attract them. Brown bears are typically attacked by tigers more often than black bears, due to their habit of living in more open areas and their inability to climb trees. When hunting bears, tigers will position themselves from the leeward side of a rock or fallen tree, waiting for the bear to pass by. When the bear passes, the tiger will spring from an overhead position and grab the bear from under the chin with one forepaw and the throat with the other. The immobilized bear is then killed with a bite to the spinal column. After killing a bear, the tiger will concentrate its feeding on the bear's fat deposits, such as the back, hams and groin. Tiger attacks on bears tend to occur when ungulate populations decrease. While tigers can successfully hunt bears, there are also records of brown bears killing tigers, either in disputes over prey or in self defense, and in at least one instance, of a bear consuming a tiger.

There have been observations of bears that changed their path after coming across tiger trails, as well as of bears following tiger tracks with no signs of fear and sleeping in the same den. However, despite the threat of predation, some brown bears actually benefit from the tiger's presence by appropriating tiger kills that the bears may not be able to successfully hunt themselves, as they usually dominate these disputes over kills.

In areas where wolves and tigers share ranges, the two species typically display a great deal of dietary overlap, resulting in intense competition. Wolf and tiger interactions are well documented in Sikhote-Alin, which until the beginning of the 20th century, held very few wolves. It is thought by certain experts that wolf numbers increased in the region after tigers were largely eliminated during the Russian colonization in the late 1800s and early 1900s. This is corroborated by native inhabitants of the region claiming that they had no memory of wolves inhabiting Sikhote-Alin until the 1930s, when tiger numbers decreased. Tigers depress wolf numbers, either to the point of localized extinction or to such low numbers as to make them a functionally insignificant component of the ecosystem. Wolves appear capable of escaping competitive exclusion from tigers only when human pressure decreases tiger numbers. Today wolves are considered scarce in tiger inhabited areas, being found in scattered pockets, and usually seen travelling as loners or in small groups. First hand accounts on interactions between the two species indicate that tigers occasionally chase wolves from their kills, while wolves will scavenge from tiger kills. Tigers are not known to prey on wolves, though there are four records of tigers killing wolves without consuming them. This competitive exclusion of wolves by tigers has been used by Russian conservationists to convince hunters in the Far East to tolerate the big cats, as they limit ungulate populations less than wolves, and are effective in controlling wolf numbers.

[brobear]

shaggygod.proboards.com/
www.kuenselonline.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=13949
11 November, 2009 - In the first recorded incident of its kind in Bhutan, a Himalayan black bear was killed and eaten by a royal Bengal tiger in the Jigme Dorji national park.

The carcass of the bear, with only its head, skin and paws remaining, was discovered by a team of foresters in Domenda, two days walk from Dodena in Thimphu, on November 7 at an altitude of 4,079 m. The kill has thrown up several questions on tigers being found at such high altitudes in winter, the relationship between bears and tigers in Bhutan’s wild and the implications of the tiger’s presence on the snow leopard habitat.

“It’s a confirmed kill by a royal Bengal tiger, since there are canine puncture marks on the bear’s throat and spine, as well as tiger claw marks lacerating the bears face and tiger pug marks in the area,” said Phub Tshering, the JDNP park beat officer, who discovered the carcass. He said that there were also signs of struggle between the bear and the tiger with rhododendrons bushes uprooted and claw marks on trees.

“Usually the Himalayan black bear is a powerful foe for any tiger and they avoid each other, but here the bear seems to be a juvenile at 2-3 years and hence did not have the muscle and fighting abilities it gets by the time it reaches its adult age of 5 years,” said Dr Sonam Wangyel, the chief forestry officer and wildlife biologist. He said that it was likely that the two animals met accidentally.

Phub Tshering said that some people, who were on tsam in the area, said that they had seen the same bear feeding on berries in late October. They also noticed tiger pug marks in the same area.

“We have, for the last three years, started noting multiple signs of the presence of tigers in such high altitude areas, ” said Phub Tshering.

Dr Sonam Wangyel said that, though there was no conclusive proof, it is possible that due to climate change the tree line was being pushed higher giving cover to the tiger. “This may also be due to shrinking and disturbed habitat at lower altitudes and hence the mountains may be the only undisturbed areas for the tiger,” he said. However, the real impact of tigers moving higher could be on the snow leopard, whose own snowline habitat could be shrinking. He said that clear scientific evidence was needed to establish the above hypothesis.

The incident has also given a peek into the relationship between the Himalayan black bear and the royal Bengal tiger.

In a camera trap set up in Nabji in 2006, it was found that a bull killed by a tiger was also being fed on by a bear at alternate intervals. “One day, the bear took away the whole carcass and the camera captured a bewildered look on the face of the tiger when it came back to feed again. The bear could be benefiting from the tigers kills,” said Dr Sonam.

He said in the wild carnivores would try to eliminate competition and the bear killed may have been a potential competitor. “Though it happens, this is rare incident since the tiger usually goes after smaller, less aggressive and weaker prey,” he said.

He also said that it was possible that tigers would be coming to these heights to cross into other valleys and that more of them were being detected due to better detection devices.

Old data show that around 115-150 tigers are found in Bhutan on the basis of sightings.

[brobear]

shaggygod.proboards.com/
6.4. The relationship with the tiger

Tiger predation - the main natural factor limiting the number of the Himalayan bear. Meeting a bear and a tiger are regularly reported. The probability of attack and the outcome determined by gender and age the tiger, the presence of experience hunting bears, bear physique, his whereabouts and possible reactions (fear or resistance). The behavior of adult tigers in meetings with older bears marked uncertain (contact) attack. Among the bears - the victims of tigers, is dominated by medium-sized specimens. In the river basin. Durmin found eight feces tiger with the remains of the Himalayan bears. In 7 cases, age was defined Bears: Bears (2 years, n = 3), young (3-4 years, n = 3) and adults. The remains of two bears, eaten by large predators, belonged Lonchakov and medium-sized specimens. In 6 cases the floor is installed tigers, bears eating: four (two and two young cubs) had killed a male, two (adult and young) female. Adult male bears have the least fear from the presence of a tiger. They are able to move on his heels and dispose of the remains of prey. An adult male bear, which has undergone the uncertain assaulted a male tiger in the terrestrial den, nest, lay down again in the same shelter. The most vulnerable females with cubs, avoiding areas with a high probability of encountering a tiger. Specializing in hunting bears inherent in individual adult male tiger. Wintering in the hollows of trees is a factor that reduces the availability of a bear for a tiger.

Fear response to the presence of congenital tiger, duration and strength of the emotional impact of a Cubs superior responses to a meeting with neighbors. The norm of reaction (anxiety level) depends on the age of the cubs, their prior experience, freshness and quality characteristics of the traces. Anxiety accompanied the meeting even the old traces: excrement, the remains of prey, tigers urinary markers. The first manifestation of fear responses to the smell of tiger noted at the age of 4.5 months.

Meetings are accompanied by excrement cautious approach, sniffing, changing abrupt withdrawal from a defensive stand and sniff. A series of loud screams of a male tiger from a distance of about 800 m cubs (age 17 months.) Exhibited an orienting reaction to the reception on their hind legs and alarm vocalization.

Meeting should be barred tiger 5-10 h (n = 3), the Bears huddled at the feet of man, anxiously vokaliziruya, did rack, carefully passed on the trail of up to 6-8 m. Movement of people and trying to go with their cubs on the trail caused a surge of fear - they climbed the trees, where they spent up to 1 h. Fresh (1-1.5 h), the trace of a male tiger has caused panic with intense vocalization and stay on the tree for 3 h. No act of a person-a guardian could not influence the behavior of bears, while at a meeting with an adult bear their motivation clearly manifested care man.


Stress-bear females (age 17 months.) Was the cause of inappropriate actions: lost cousins, hiding in a nearby tree, she loudly vokaliziruya the first time during the experiment left the group, which led to a clash with the tiger. The unsuccessful attack provoked the tiger cubs stay on the tree during the day and influenced behavior in the coming days. The cubs were in a state of increased excitability, immediately reacting to even insignificant background noise, stopped playing. Certain short-term (less than 60 seconds), the elements of play behavior were first observed only after 5 days. Reaction to the traces of the tiger has been changed to decrease the threshold of excitability and increase the duration of avoidance. 3 days after the attack, revealing the night (> 8 hours), the trace of a male tiger, bear cubs spent on a tree 60, 70 (males) and 105 (female) min.

[brobear]

The only two natural predators of the black bears are the grizzly and, in Asia, the tiger. However, I have thus far found no data proving that a tiger will kill a mature male black bear. No confirmed accounts does not prove that it doesn't happen but without the data we cannot confirm that it does. As for the grizzly, the sex and size of the black bear is not an issue.
Here is an incident of illustrating the strength and power of an American black bear - shaggygod.proboards.com/

Black Bear Won Battle with African Lion


In 1956 at the winter quarters in Florida of the Ringling Bothers Circus, a
Maine black bear and an African lion were being trained for an act together.
The trainer turned away for a moment and the lion jumped the bear, ripping
its shoulder open. Whereupon, "the bear reared up and hit the lion a mighty
blow with its forepaw. The big cat went backward for several feet and nearly had
its shoulder torn off. The lion was injured so badly that it had to be destroyed,
but the bear was ready to go back to work within few days".

[brobear]

"...I wondered what the black bear will be eating in the Park as the only edible fruit I saw was of Zizyphus mauritiana the fruits of which were as big as a small lemon indicating the productivity of the land. The omnivorous bear should also be scavenging on the tiger kills. I saluted the brave black bear (during my short stay I had seen tracks of two different bears), which manage to survive even in the alluvial floodplain habitat with a high density of tigers but scattered trees where, therefore, the chances of scurrying up the trees when confronted by a tiger are less..."
Enchanting Kaziranga
- A.J.T. Johnsingh
oldwww.wii.gov.in/publications/newsletter/nletterwinter2001spring2002/page9.htm


"During fieldwork, Himalayan black bears were found scavenging at almost all
the tiger and leopard kills. It will be both interesting and valuable to investigate how
bear caching of tiger kills may affect the frequency of kills made by tigers and
leopards and the consequent impact on farmers. "
UNDERSTANDING ECOLOGICAL INTERACTIONS AMONG. CARNIVORES, UNGULATES AND FARMERS IN BHUTAN'S JIGME. SINGYE WANGCHUCK NATIONAL PARK. Sonam Wangyel Wang, Ph. D
www.moa.gov.bt/moa/downloads/downloadFiles/MoADownload0yy9906pt.pdf 
 

shaggygod.proboards.com/

[brobear]

First posted by Warsaw - translated from Russian -  shaggygod.proboards.com/


6.4. The relationship with the tiger

Tiger predation - the main natural factor limiting the number of the Himalayan bear. Meeting a bear and a tiger are regularly reported. The probability of attack and the outcome determined by gender and age the tiger, the presence of experience hunting bears, bear physique, his whereabouts and possible reactions (fear or resistance). The behavior of adult tigers in meetings with older bears marked uncertain (contact) attack. Among the bears - the victims of tigers, is dominated by medium-sized specimens. In the river basin. Durmin found eight feces tiger with the remains of the Himalayan bears. In 7 cases, age was defined Bears: Bears (2 years, n = 3), young (3-4 years, n = 3) and adults. The remains of two bears, eaten by large predators, belonged Lonchakov and medium-sized specimens. In 6 cases the floor is installed tigers, bears eating: four (two and two young cubs) had killed a male, two (adult and young) female. Adult male bears have the least fear from the presence of a tiger. They are able to move on his heels and dispose of the remains of prey. An adult male bear, which has undergone the uncertain assaulted a male tiger in the terrestrial den, nest, lay down again in the same shelter. The most vulnerable females with cubs, avoiding areas with a high probability of encountering a tiger. Specializing in hunting bears inherent in individual adult male tiger. Wintering in the hollows of trees is a factor that reduces the availability of a bear for a tiger.

Fear response to the presence of congenital tiger, duration and strength of the emotional impact of a Cubs superior responses to a meeting with neighbors. The norm of reaction (anxiety level) depends on the age of the cubs, their prior experience, freshness and quality characteristics of the traces. Anxiety accompanied the meeting even the old traces: excrement, the remains of prey, tigers urinary markers. The first manifestation of fear responses to the smell of tiger noted at the age of 4.5 months.

Meetings are accompanied by excrement cautious approach, sniffing, changing abrupt withdrawal from a defensive stand and sniff. A series of loud screams of a male tiger from a distance of about 800 m cubs (age 17 months.) Exhibited an orienting reaction to the reception on their hind legs and alarm vocalization.

Meeting should be barred tiger 5-10 h (n = 3), the Bears huddled at the feet of man, anxiously vokaliziruya, did rack, carefully passed on the trail of up to 6-8 m. Movement of people and trying to go with their cubs on the trail caused a surge of fear - they climbed the trees, where they spent up to 1 h. Fresh (1-1.5 h), the trace of a male tiger has caused panic with intense vocalization and stay on the tree for 3 h. No act of a person-a guardian could not influence the behavior of bears, while at a meeting with an adult bear their motivation clearly manifested care man.


Stress-bear females (age 17 months.) Was the cause of inappropriate actions: lost cousins, hiding in a nearby tree, she loudly vokaliziruya the first time during the experiment left the group, which led to a clash with the tiger. The unsuccessful attack provoked the tiger cubs stay on the tree during the day and influenced behavior in the coming days. The cubs were in a state of increased excitability, immediately reacting to even insignificant background noise, stopped playing. Certain short-term (less than 60 seconds), the elements of play behavior were first observed only after 5 days. Reaction to the traces of the tiger has been changed to decrease the threshold of excitability and increase the duration of avoidance. 3 days after the attack, revealing the night (> 8 hours), the trace of a male tiger, bear cubs spent on a tree 60, 70 (males) and 105 (female) min. 
 

[brobear]

INTERSPECIFIC RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN THE AMUR TIGER (PANTHERA TIGRIS ALTAICA) AND THE BROWN (URSUS ARCTOS) AND ASIATIC BLACK BEARS (URSUS THIBETANUS)

Ivan V. Seryodkin
Dale Miquelle
John Goodrich
A.V. Kostyria
Yuri K. Petrunenko



Abstract - shaggygod.proboards.com/

During 1992–2013 we studied the relationship between Amur tigers and brown and Asiatic black bears in the Sikhote-Alin Nature Reserve and surrounding areas in the southern Russian Far East. To determine the importance of bears in the diet of tigers, 763 kills were located and identified, and 430 tiger scat samples were collected and analyzed. To detect kills and scat samples we used radio telemetry and satellite tracking, as well as snow-tracking. Relying on evidence revealed by tracks, as well as radio telemetry, we determined whether bears exploited tiger kills as a food resource, and how the two may have interacted at kill sites. Thirty-two Asiatic black bear and 12 brown bear den sites were measured to define properties that might assist in protection from the threat of a tiger attack. We identified 641 instances of marking on trees by both tigers and bears, an indication of the complexity of their relationship. Bears are an important part of tigers’ diet, representing 2.2% of all kills found. Bear remains were found in 8.4% of examined tiger scats. Bears exploited tiger kills after a tiger had left, by usurping a kill, or by “sharing” a kill at alternate times. The occurrence of den properties that provided some protection from tigers was dependent on the den type and location. Evidence of both tiger and bear marking was detected at 50.1% of marked trees. A literature review of the relationship of tigers and bears is provided

[brobear]

carnivoraforum.com/topic/9334189/1/

"Whether the bear had been waiting for this moment I do not know; anyway, while the tiger was crunching the bone, the bear drew himself to the edge and, gathering his feet under him, launched himself into the hole with a mighty scream. The object of the scream I imagine was to intimidate the tiger, but so far from having this affect it appeared to infuriate him, for the bear's mighty scream was aswered by an even mightier roar from the tiger.
Fights in the wild are very rare and this is only the second case I know of different species of animals fighting for the sake of fighting and not for the purpose of using the other as food. I did not see the fight, for the reasons I have given, but I heard every detail of it. Waged in the hollow of restricted area the sound was terrifying and I was thankful that the fight was a straight one between the two contestants who were capable of defending themselves, and not a three cornered one in which I was involved. Time stands still when every drop of blood racing through a rapidly beating heart is tingling with excitement. The fight may have lasted three minutes, or it may have lasted longer. Anyway, when the tiger considered he had adminstered sufficient chastisement he broke of the engagement and came along the open ground infront of me at a fast gallop, closely followed by the still screaming bear.
...
After a quite smoke I stepped down from the holly tree and went to have a look at the bear, who, I found, was bigger than I had first thought. His self-sought fight with the tiger had been a very real one, for blood from a number of deep cuts was seeping through the thick fur on his neck and in several places his scalp was torn right down to the bone. These wounds in themselves would have mattered little to a tough animal like a bear, but what did matter and what had annoyed him was the injury to his nose. All males resent being struck on the nose, and not only had the bear been struck on that tender spot but insult had been added to injury by his nose being torn in half."

Account mentioned earlier from Jim Corbett's : The Temple Tiger and More Man-Eaters of Kumaon. Part 1 - The Temple Tiger.
There is also mention of Himalayan Black Bears eating tiger kills and chasing Leopards off their's. A large male Himalayan Black Bear would be something like 350 - 450 lbs, a large male Tiger (the Temple Tiger) would be something like 500 - 600 lbs.
The Bear was shot by Corbett out of fear of its approach to him while so aggressive, though he didn't want to.

[brobear]

shaggygod.proboards.com/

"I look forward to seeing it."

Unfortunately, it's available only in Russian.(page 18,19).Conclusion of this study (page 18 and 19) is that large male black bear (not "average" is a dangerous adversary for any tigers.

shaggygod.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=tigers&action=display&thread=706&page=1

This paper (page18,19)also indirectly confirms below quoted text:

“...Usually the Himalayan black bear is a powerful foe for any tiger and they avoid each other, but here the bear seems to be a juvenile at 2-3 years and hence did not have the muscle and fighting abilities it gets by the time it reaches its adult age of 5 years,” said Dr Sonam Wangyel, the chief forestry officer and wildlife biologist. He said that it was likely that the two animals met accidentally..."
www.bhutan-italy.com/main/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=168&Itemid=69
"...Himalayan (or Asiatic black) bear (which we observed visually), like the brown bear that has already been mentioned, clearly did not fear the presence of tigers. He walked along the tiger's tracks and rested in the same wild boar den as did the tiger..."
tigers.ru/books/ecolog/ch12_en.html

[brobear]

Interspecific predatory relationships  -   www.wikiwand.com/en/Asian_black_bear#/Interspecific_predatory_relationships

Asiatic black bears may be occasionally attacked by tigers and brown bears, although leopards, and packs of wolves and dholes can also be threats. Eurasian lynxes are a potential predator of cubs. Black bears usually dominate Amur leopards in physical confrontations in heavily vegetated areas, while leopards are uppermost in open areas, though the outcome of such encounters is largely dependent on the size of the individual animals. Leopards have been known to prey on cubs younger than two years old.

The Asiatic black bear's range overlaps with that of sloth bears in central and southern India, sun bears in Southeast Asia and brown bears in the southern part of the Russian Far East. Ussuri brown bears may attack black bears, though Himalayan brown bears seem to be intimidated by the black species in direct encounters. They will eat the fruit dropped by black bears from trees, as they themselves are too large and cumbersome to climb.

Tigers will occasionally prey on black bears. Russian hunters may occasionally find black bear carcasses showing evidence of tiger predation, and their remains may occur in tiger scats. If they manage to escape a tiger, black bears will attempt to rush up a tree and wait for the tiger to leave, though some tigers will pretend to leave, and wait for the bear to descend. One Manchurian tiger was reported to have lured an Asiatic black bear by imitating the species' mating call. Tigers regularly prey on young bears but adult bears are occasionally taken as well. Black bears are usually safe from tiger attacks once they reach five years of age. Although black bears prefer to avoid tigers, they can be extremely tenacious when attacked: Jim Corbett observed a fight between a tiger and the largest black bear he had ever seen, which resulted in the bear managing to chase off the tiger, despite having half its nose and scalp torn off. However, black bears may be less vulnerable than brown bears to tiger predation, due to their habit of living in hollows or in close set rocks, thus making them harder to pursue. At least one fatal attack on a juvenile bear has been recorded in Jigme Dorji National Park, as Bhutan's tiger populations have begun to colonise higher altitude areas. Black bears may steal tiger kills: Jim Corbett twice saw black bears carry off tiger kills when the latter was absent.

[brobear]

*Note: above wiki-post claims that the Himalayan brown bear is too large and cumbersome to climb a tree. Wrong! These are among the smallest of grizzly sub-species; actually smaller than the Asiatic black bears. A grizzly is simply not evolved to be a tree-climber. Different body-plan and different claws.

[King Kodiak]

Brobear...check out this book account and tell me what you think.
very large black bears defeat tigers in fair fights.




books.google.com/books?id=SelGAAAAYAAJ&q=very+large+black+bears+defeat+tigers+in+fair+fights&dq=very+large+black+bears+defeat+tigers+in+fair+fights&hl=es&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwinqryu_qPdAhVRq1kKHS1YCSwQ6AEIJzAA

[brobear]

In both Asia and America, the grizzly is an occasional predator of the two black bear species. There are exceptions to the rule. The almost-exclusively vegetarian Himalayan ( red ) bear will retreat from the larger black bear. Not so the larger Tibetan ( blue) bear which eats meat whenever possible and is highly aggressive.

[Polar]

Sept 5, 2018 8:36:00 GMT -5 King Kodiak said:

Brobear...check out this book account and tell me what you think.
very large black bears defeat tigers in fair fights.




books.google.com/books?id=SelGAAAAYAAJ&q=very+large+black+bears+defeat+tigers+in+fair+fights&dq=very+large+black+bears+defeat+tigers+in+fair+fights&hl=es&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwinqryu_qPdAhVRq1kKHS1YCSwQ6AEIJzAA

How big is "very large"?

[King Kodiak]

Polar....it does not say the weights, just says “very large”. But the max weight of the asiatic black bear is about 440 lbs.

[brobear]

I have read the account by Jim Corbett about the big black bear who fought and defeated a tiger. Black bears, both American and Asiatic are often greatly underrated. An American once killed a lion with a paw-swipe. And check this out: www.askabiologist.org.uk/answers/viewtopic.php?id=546
Quote: 'm sorry to say that bears and lions have been pitted against one another on many, many occasions, always for human 'sport'. When brown/grizzly bears are involved, they always win hands-down: in fact, in historical pitted fights fought in Canada, lions were reputed to last less than 5 mins against adult bears. Even small bears like sloth bears can hold their own against adult lions, with the lion coming off much worse.

All bears are immensely strong. Grizzly ( I feel certain ) are pound-for-pound the strongest of bears.

[King Kodiak]

Very nice link. And you are right about black bears being underrated.