Biggest Bears on Earth

Polar Bears

• Polar bears are not only the largest bear species, they are Earth's largest land predator. Usually about four feet tall at the shoulder, polar bears can be as tall as 10 feet when they stand erect. Female polar bears grow to weigh between 400 and 800 pounds while males are considerably larger, growing to tip the scale at between 800 and 1,600 pounds or more. Polar bears are native to arctic regions and mainly live in Canada, although they can also be found in Alaska, Greenland, Siberia, and Norway. Polar bears have fur that usually appears white but can also be yellow-hued or green-hued.

Grizzly Bears

• Grizzly bears, also known as brown or Kodiak bears, are another large species of the mammal. These bears, native to North America, can grow to stand between five and eight feet tall and weigh as much as 800 pounds. As with most bear species, the females are smaller than the males. Grizzly bears get their name from their grizzled appearance -- their fur can be a mixture of browns and grays. Considered an endangered species, grizzly bears are threatened due to practices of over hunting.

Black Bears

• Still a giant bear, black bears are considered to be a significantly smaller bear species, measuring two or three feet high at the shoulder and weighing between 150 and 300 pounds. Some black bears, however, especially males, have been known to weigh as much as 500 or 600 pounds. Black bears are also native to North America and live in many of the same areas as grizzly bears although their territory stretches much further south than the grizzly's. Like grizzly bears, black bears are also endangered in certain areas.

Other Large Bears

• The remaining five bear species are somewhat smaller than the giant bears. Asiatic black bears, the largest of the remaining bears, usually weigh about 225 pounds but some males of the species can grow to approximately 400 pounds. Spectacles bears can also grow to nearly 400 pounds while Asia's sloth bears top out at about 300 pounds. Panda bears only weigh about 200 pounds at their heaviest while the world's smallest bear, the sun bear, weighs just 100 pounds.