Sloth Bears of the Mudhumalai Range!

ISO: 200
Exposure: 1/180 sec
Aperture: 2.8
Focal Length: 200mm

Shot these two fellows in Mudhumalai with my D200 @ 200mm f2.8. Both of them were slowly walking towards us. As they have poor eyesight, they did not realize we were there until they came very close, after which they took off.

Sloth bears are distinguished from Asian black bears by their larger builds, longer, shaggier coat, pale muzzle and white claws.
Adult sloth bears may travel in pairs, with the males being gentle with cubs. They may fight for food. They walk in a slow, shambling motion, with their feet being set down in a noisy, flapping motion. They are capable of galloping faster than running humans. Although they appear slow and clumsy, sloth bears are excellent climbers. They climb to feed and rest, though not to escape enemies, as they prefer to stand their ground. They are capable of climbing on smooth surfaces and hang upside down like sloths.


According to Robert Armitage Sterndale, in his Mammalia of India (1884):
[The sloth bear] is also more inclined to attack man unprovoked than almost any other animal, and casualties inflicted by it are unfortunately very common, the victim being often terribly disfigured even if not killed, as the bear strikes at the head and face. Blanford was inclined to consider bears more dangerous than tigers...