The Sloth Bear (Melursus ursinus), also called the labiated bear because of its long lower lip and palate used for sucking insects, is an insectivorous bear species native to the Indian subcontinent, and the only member of the genus Melursus. It mainly feeds on fruits, ants, and termites. If threatened, they will stand on two legs, brandishing their clawed forepaws as weapons, predators include tigers, dholes, wolves and leopards.
It has a long, shaggy fur, a mane around the face, and long, sickle-shaped claws. It is lankier than brown and Asian black bears. It shares features of insectivorous mammals and evolved during the Pleistocene from the ancestral brown bear through convergent evolution.
Sloth bears breed during spring and early summer and give birth near the beginning of winter.
It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, mainly because of habitat loss and degradation. Historically, humans have drastically reduced their habitat and diminished their population by poached them for food and products such as their bacula and claws.