Accepted taxon: Melursus ursinus
Accepted taxon: Melursus ursinus
| Taxon: |
Melursus ursinus |
| Rank: |
Species |
| Higher Classification: |
CARNIVORA | CANIFORMIA | Ursidae | Melursus |
| Reference: |
Wilson, Don E., and DeeAnn M. Reeder, eds. Mammal Species of the World. A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed), JHU Press, 2005. |
Fig.1 - Ternary plot of the proximate analysis for the Melursus ursinus diet.
CF (Crude Fibre) 10, ASH (Ash contents) 6, NFE (Nitrogen-Free-Extract) 37, CP (Crude Protein) 29, EE (Ether Extract) 19.
See details for the calculations in Lintulaakso, K., Tatti, N. and Žliobaitė, I., 2022. Quantifying mammalian diets.
Mammalian Biology, pp.1-15.
[DOI]
Table 1. List of Diet Items for Melursus ursinus.
| TSN Complete name |
Part |
Ratio a. |
Reference(s) |
| Termitidae |
WHOLE |
22.50 |
Grzimek,B… |
| Insecta |
WHOLE |
14.25 |
Grzimek,B… |
| Vertebrata |
EGGS |
12.70 |
Grzimek,B… |
| Magnoliopsida |
FRUIT |
11.83 |
Grzimek,B… |
| Magnoliopsida |
EXUDATES |
10.24 |
Grzimek,B… |
| Magnoliopsida |
SHOOT |
8.93 |
Grzimek,B… |
| Scarabaeoidea |
LARVAE |
7.78 |
Nowak,R. … |
| Vertebrata |
CARRION |
6.23 |
Grzimek,B… |
| Poaceae |
STEM |
3.33 |
Nowak,R. … |
| Magnoliopsida |
FLOWER |
2.22 |
Nowak,R. … |
a. Standardized values.
See details for the calculations in Lintulaakso, K., Tatti, N. and Žliobaitė, I., 2022. Quantifying mammalian diets.
Mammalian Biology, pp.1-15.
[DOI]
Table 2. List of Standard Traits for Melursus ursinus.
| Trait |
Selected Value |
All Value(s) |
Reference(s) |
|
Dietary category: Miljutin 2009
|
Frugivore
|
Frugivore
|
– John L. Gittleman, 1985, 'Carnivore body size: Ecological and taxonomic correlates', Oecologia, vol. 67, no. 4, pp. 540-554
|
|
Temporal habits
|
arrhythmic
|
arrhythmic
|
– John L. Gittleman, 1985, 'Carnivore body size: Ecological and taxonomic correlates', Oecologia, vol. 67, no. 4, pp. 540-554
|
|
Locomotion: Eisenberg 1981
|
Scansonal
|
Scansonal
|
– John L. Gittleman, 1985, 'Carnivore body size: Ecological and taxonomic correlates', Oecologia, vol. 67, no. 4, pp. 540-554
|
|
Dietary category: Eisenberg 1981
|
Frugivore-Herbivore
|
Frugivore-Herbivore
|
– John L. Gittleman, 1985, 'Carnivore body size: Ecological and taxonomic correlates', Oecologia, vol. 67, no. 4, pp. 540-554
|
Table 3. List of Standard Measurements for Melursus ursinus.
| Measurement |
Location |
Unit |
n Total |
n Unknown |
n Female |
n Male |
Min |
Mean |
Max |
SD |
Reference(s) |
| Body Mass (BM) |
nan |
g |
3 |
3 |
- |
- |
- |
96,010.5 |
- |
- |
Engelman,… |
| Body Mass (BM) |
nan |
g |
- |
- |
- |
- |
55,000 |
- |
140,000 |
- |
Freudenth… |
| Head-Body Length (HBL) |
nan |
mm |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
1,633.57 |
- |
- |
Engelman,… |
| Occipital condyle width (OCW) |
nan |
mm |
3 |
3 |
- |
- |
- |
54.24 |
- |
- |
Engelman,… |
Table 4. List of other Measurements b. for Melursus ursinus.
| Measurement |
Location |
Unit |
n Total |
n Unknown |
n Female |
n Male |
Min |
Mean |
Max |
SD |
Reference(s) |
| brainmass |
nan |
g |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
267 |
- |
- |
Engelman,… |
| skull_length |
nan |
mm |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
304 |
- |
- |
Engelman,… |
| BMR (kJ/h) |
nan |
kJ/h |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
169 |
- |
- |
McNab, B.… |
| femur circumference |
nan |
mm |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
68 |
- |
- |
Nelson, A… |
| humerus circumference |
nan |
mm |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
77 |
- |
- |
Nelson, A… |
b. other Measurements.
Source Measurements which are not listed on or mapped with the Standard Traits..
Table 5. List of Data Sources for Melursus ursinus.
| Taxon |
Reference |
Match |
Status |
| Melursus ursinus |
Gittleman,J. L., 1985, Carnivore body size: ecological and taxonomic correlates, Oecologia |
1: Exact Taxon match |
Verified - Accepted |
| Ursus ursinus |
Nowak,R. M., 1991, Walker's mammals of the world, |
150: Genus synonym, same species epithet |
Created - Not verified |
| Melursus ursinus |
Grzimek,B., 2003, Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia: Mammals I-V, |
1: Exact Taxon match |
Verified - Accepted |
| Ursus ursinus |
Nowak,R. M., 1991, Walker's mammals of the world, |
150: Genus synonym, same species epithet |
Created - Not verified |
| Melursus ursinus |
Law, C.J., Blackwell, E.A., Curtis, A.A., Dickinson, E., Hartstone‐Rose, A. and Santana, S.E., 2022. Decoupled evolution of the cranium and mandible in carnivoran mammals. Evolution. |
1: Exact Taxon match |
Verified - Accepted |
| Melursus ursinus |
Engelman, R.K., 2022. Occipital condyle width (OCW) is a highly accurate predictor of body mass in therian mammals. BMC biology, 20(1), p.37. |
1: Exact Taxon match |
Verified - Accepted |
| Melursus ursinus |
McNab, B.K., 2008. An analysis of the factors that influence the level and scaling of mammalian BMR. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part A: Molecular & Integrative Physiology, 151(1), pp.5-28. |
1: Exact Taxon match |
Verified - Accepted |
| Melursus ursinus |
Nelson, A., Engelman, R.K. and Croft, D.A., 2023. How to weigh a fossil mammal? South American notoungulates as a case study for estimating body mass in extinct clades. Journal of Mammalian Evolution, 30(3), pp.773-809. |
1: Exact Taxon match |
Verified - Accepted |
| Melursus ursinus |
Freudenthal, M. and Martín-Suárez, E., 2013. Estimating body mass of fossil rodents. Scripta Geologica, 145, pp.1-513. |
1: Exact Taxon match |
Verified - Accepted |
| Melursus ursinus |
Rowan, J., Beaudrot, L., Franklin, J., Reed, K.E., Smail, I.E., Zamora, A. and Kamilar, J.M., 2020. Geographically divergent evolutionary and ecological legacies shape mammal biodiversity in the global tropics and subtropics. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117(3), pp.1559-1565. |
1: Exact Taxon match |
Verified - Accepted |
Citation for this page:
[The MammalBase community 2026. / CC BY 4.0. http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7462864
Melursus ursinus
, Accessed 30th April 2026 at https://mammalbase.net/me/14642]