Looks like a Sun Bear to me... But it doesnt look like an
escapee from the zoo since Ulu Pandan is like so far away from the
Zoo / Night Safari....
Probably somebody has kept the bear illegal for years and decided
to free it there....
The Sun Bear (Helarctos malayanus),
sometimes known as the Honey Bear, is a bear found primarily in the
tropical
rainforests of Southeast
Asia.
The Sun Bear stands approximately 1.2 m (4 ft)or maybe larger in
length, making it the smallest member in the bear (Ursidae) family.
Males tend to be 10-45%
larger than females;[2]
the former normally weigh between 30 and 60 kg (66-132 lb), and the
latter between 20 and 40 kg (44-88 lb).[3]
The Sun Bear possesses sickle-shaped claws that are relatively
light in weight. It has large paws with naked soles, probably
to assist in climbing. Its
inward-turned feet make the bear's walk pigeon toed, but it is an
excellent climber. It has small, round ears and a stout snout. The
tail is 1.2-2.8 inches (3-7 cm) long.[2]
Despite its small size, the Sun Bear possesses a very long, slender
tongue, ranging from 8 to 10 inches (20-25 cm) in length. The bear
uses it to extract honey from beehives.[4]
Unlike other bears, the Sun Bear's fur is short and sleek.
This adaptation
is probably due to the lowland climates it inhabits. Dark black or
brown-black fur covers its body, except on the chest, where there
is a pale orange-yellow marking in the
shape of a horseshoe. Similar
colored fur can be found around the muzzle and the eyes. These
distinctive markings give the Sun Bear its name.
The diet of the
Sun Bear varies widely and includes small vertebrates, such as
lizards, birds,
and other mammals, in addition to
fruits, eggs,
termites, the young tips
of palm trees, nests of bees,
berries, sprouts, insects, roots,
cocoa, and coconuts. Its powerful jaws can crack open
nuts. Much of the Sun Bear's food must be detected using its keen
sense of smell, as its
sight is
poor.
Adult Sun Bears have almost no predators except
humans, due to their fierce reputation and formidable
teeth.[5]
Occasionally, they may be overwhelmed by tigers, or
large reticulated
pythons. Other possible predators include the leopard, the clouded leopard,
and the Sun Bear's larger sympatric relative,
the Asiatic Black
Bear.[3]
The bear's loose skin on its neck allows it to wriggle its body
inside its skin far enough to turn around and bite its attacker
when grabbed.
The recent decline in the Sun Bear population can be
largely attributed to the hunting of "nuisance
bears" that destroy crops and widespread poaching driven by the
market for their fur and for their bile, which is used in Chinese
medicine.
Sometimes, Sun Bears are captured or bred to be domestic pets--a
role for which they are considered desirable, due to their
relatively inoffensive nature and small size in comparison with
other bears.[6]
The IUCN reclassified the Sun
Bear from "data deficient"
to "vulnerable"
status in 2007.[7]
Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun_Bear
