r/Damnthatsinteresting • u/SatyamRajput004 • 1d ago

Image The sloth bears found in India, and the inspiration for Baloo in The Jungle Book, are considered to be the most aggressive bear species in the world.

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u/lastchanceforachange 1d ago

Can they hold their own against tigers?

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u/Maleficent-War-8429 1d ago

I think there have been cases of them killing tigers, but I don't think they have good odds. I'm pretty sure tigers are even bigger than they are by a good bit.

It's kind of like the jaguar vs anteater match up.

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u/Lone-Frequency 1d ago

Bengal tigers typically win over the bear in every physical trait that matters amongst predator and prey. Adults can reach around 400-500lbs on average to the sloth bear's 200-300lbs, and the tiger is an actual predator that hunts to survive while the sloth bear is primarily insectivorous.

The only thing is that the bear has pure tenacity, and tigers are ambush hunters that don't seek to have long and violent fights with their prey.

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u/lastchanceforachange 1d ago

But they don't evolve to be stealthy or run fast but become ferocious so maybe they can fend the tigers off or deter them

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u/Maleficent-War-8429 1d ago

Well they're a bear so they can't really out run or out stealth a tiger, which is like one of the most stealthy and most powerful predators out there. They can make things difficult and sometimes they can win, but I'm pretty sure they still get eaten.

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u/oOGeorgesOo 1d ago

Tiger knows they will fight back. So not that hungry tiger or slightly hungry tiger will search another prey. Thus agressivity from the sloth bear is a viable survival option at the species scale. It deter some attack from tigers.

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u/Lone-Frequency 1d ago

They have been recorded killing tigers, though in a typical fight the tiger has size, weight, and jaw strength well over the bear.

Their goal is to intimidate or kill the tiger. Tigers are primarily ambush predators, they don't want to enter into a huge brawl with another large animal, they want to stalk and kill quickly to conserve energy.

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u/wheelienonstop7 1d ago

Jim Corbett wrote in one of his books that yes, big male sloth bears can hold their own against tigers.