On previous posts, I have shown images of a black bear cub (Ursus americanus) climbing a tree and a Spirit, or Kermode, bear (Ursus americanus kermodei), which is a rare subspecies of black bears who are born white because of a recessive gene present in the blood of both parents, but are not albino because their nose and eyes are black.
The image on this post shows a cinnamon black bear (Ursus americanus cinnamomum): sometimes these black bears are mistaken for brown or grizzly bears because of the color of their coat. Although there is no clarity as to what makes the fur of certain black bears take on this cinnamon brown color, evidence suggests that black bear coat colors vary as a mechanism of camouflage or because of climate and habitat.
So, while in the forested states east of the Great Plains, almost all black bears are black-furred, in western states that have mountain meadows and open forests, more than half of the black bears are brown or cinnamon. This is because lighter colored fur reduces heat stress in open sunlight and also helps bears camouflage from predators in open areas.
Sources: North American Bear Center; The American Bear Association; Ursus International
If you would like to see more images of mine, feel free to browse my Galleries.
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Clicks & Corks 
always amazed by your work! fabulous!
Thank you so much, MM: greatly appreciated. Glad you liked the image! 🙂
I like all your images, it seems! You are so talented! And I truly have NO idea how you manage to get up close with all this amazing fauna and capture animals in action at just the right moment! That takes incredible skill.
Thank you very much once again for your very kind words, MM! 🙂
One of the key elements of wildlife photography is certainly patience: things happen when they happen, and sometimes they just do not happen at all, and a photographer needs to accepts it. This collection of images is but a selection of exciting moments taken out of a long time spent in the field tracking wildlife and hoping that it would do something exciting at the right time, in the right light, in the right spot relative to where you are set up, when you have not run out of space on your memory card, etc…. 😉
But a good shot is in my view ample reward for the time and effort invested into making that image and learning about your subject.
Thanks again for you kind comment 🙂
It’s always a delight seeing your wildlife photos, dear Stefano. What a capture, with the perfect light and the expression on his face! Makes him look almost harmless and cuddly like a Steifbear.
I hope you all have an enjoyable weekend. Lots of love and a big hug across the pond!
Dina
Thank you very much, dear Dina: it really was a beautiful black bear. Glad you enjoyed the image.
Love & hugs to you too! 🙂
Stefano
Wow, this is one spectacular picture, Stefano!
Thank you, Anatoli: so glad you liked it! 🙂
Long may you continue to delight us with photographs like these. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you very much, Maureen: happy you liked the photo. And yes, I have a few more that I would love to share with you all! 😉
Excellent!
Thank you, Elena! 🙂
Gorgeous bear, gorgeous shot. I love the light landing on its face giving so much detail there.
Thank you, Lyle: as you know too well given the time you spend in the field creating your beautiful images, the habitat of these guys may be challenging from a lighting perspective, especially on clear days, so yes, this was a lucky break with the light on its face! 🙂 Thank you for your kind comment.
This is one fantastic shot, Stefano, as are the rest in the black bear gallery. I didn’t realize that there was a cinnamon bear west of the Mississippi. Mother Nature is a wonderful caretaker.
Thank you, John: glad you liked it. And so very true: Mother Nature never stops to amaze and delight us with her wonders! 🙂
Simply beautiful shot but I hope you had a very powerful lens!
Thank you, Azita: glad you liked the image! 🙂
It’s so big…incredible. And I love that pensive face…but they still scare the crap out of me….
Thank you, Oliver! Yes, it was pretty big, especially for a black bear. The one thing you don’t want to do is startle them, that’s for certain! 😉
What a gorgeous bear! Very nicely photographed, Stefano!!
Thank you, Camilla! It really was a beautiful, healthy bear. Glad you liked the bear… and the shot! 😉
Amazing shot! Love it!
Thank you, Sofia: glad you liked it! 🙂
What an incredible post Stefano. Bears are such magestic creatures, you captured it perfectly. Thanks for the rundown on the cinnamon black bear also, I wasn’t aware of the difference. We don’t have bears here in Australia (except in zoos!) so it’s an unknown world to me 🙂
Thank you very much, Laura: glad you liked it! 🙂 Bears are among my favorite wild animals on the planet! 😀