Cinnamon bear

Common card · No. 255383

The cinnamon bear (Ursus americanus cinnamomum) is both a highly variable color morph and a subspecies of the American black bear, native to the North America. As a subspecies, it therefore most likely exists alongside the mostly black-colored eastern American black bear present in those regions, and breeds with it. Although there are also small populations located in the north east foothills and mountains of California, above 3,000 ft (910 m) elevation. The most striking difference between a cinnamon bear and any other black bear is its brown or red-brown fur (reminiscent of cinnamon), blocky head, and often a storage of fat causing a small hump on its back near the neck/shoulder. The subspecies was given this designation because the lighter color phase is more common there than in other areas. It is proposed that the brownish coats actually mimic a grizzly bear.

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