Ursus is a genus of large bears found in the Nearctic and Palearctic biogeographic realms. The genus is the second in Prehistoric Kingdom to still have living members, in the Black (American & Asian), Brown and Polar Bears. The extinct species found in Prehistoric Kingdom is U. spelaeus, also known as the Cave Bear. They lived throughout Eurasia during the Pleistocene, and would've lived alongside Mammuthus, Coelodonta, Panthera and Megaloceros on the frozen steppes and woodlands that it called home.
Ursus was added to Prehistoric Kingdom in Update 13 alongside Megaloceros.
In Game[]
Description[]
Ursus spelaeus is very similar in appearance and size to modern large bears, especially to the Brown Bear.
Each skin draws more from different living bears, with "Strigoi" looking similar to that of a Grizzly Bear, "Otso" having some Black Bear characteristics such as a dark body and lighter muzzle, and "Artio" being somewhat comparable to Sun Bears and Sloth Bears with striking white chest patterning and eye spots.
Management[]
To be announced.
In-Game Trivia[]
Nigel Marven
A cave bear’s diet is far more vegetarian than its modern relatives’, but that doesn’t make them any less dangerous.
Nigel Marven
Cave bear remains are mostly found in caves, where they hibernated or even lived (hence the name). Unfortunately, these caves were also great homes for our ancestors, so they likely competed for real estate!
Nigel Marven
Even giant pandas, with their cute and cuddly reputations, have exceptionally strong bites for eating bamboo. Now, imagine an herbivorous bear that weighs as much as, if not more than, an adult polar bear…
Nigel Marven
The cave bear belongs to the genus known as Ursus, alongside extant brown, black, and polar bears. This same genus lends its name to Ursa Major, a constellation in the northern hemisphere. If you’re ever stargazing and want to find to Ursa Major, start by looking for the Big Dipper.
Paleontology[]
As their common name suggests, most fossils of Ursus spelaeus are found in caves and may have lived in them for much longer than the Brown Bear which only uses caves to hibernate during the winter. This may have been an adaptation for the harsher conditions during the glacial advances of the Pleistocene.
Ursus spelaeus was named in 1794 by the German anatomist Johann Christian Rosenmüller. Its scientific name means Cave (spelaeus) Bear (Ursus).
Paleoecology[]
The teeth of Cave Bears differ from many modern day bears, as they lack the usual two or three premolars found in other species. This coupled with carbon and nitrogen levels suggest that the Cave Bear had a primarily herbivorous diet compared to other bears, though some have come to doubt this interpretation, instead advocating for a more varied diet.
Cave Bears would have faced many hardships both from the elements and from other animals, with attacks from Cave Lions and humans being known from multiple sites. Competition for shelter and predation likely would have driven these animals into combat, similar to predatory relationships seen today between some tigers and hibernating bears today.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Ursus is the second genus in Prehistoric Kingdom to have living representatives, with the first being Panthera.
- Ursus is the only animal currently in-game that is able to eat all available feed types.
- In its reintroduction to Prehistoric Kingdom's modern early access build during October 2024's Dev Diary the relative mundanity of the animal was addressed with a simple response:
- "Some of you may be thinking it’s 'just a bear,' but to that, we offer the following counterpoint: It’s a bear!"
- Ursus was the first member of Caniformia (dogs, raccoons, mustelids, seals, etc) to be featured in-game, as all carnivoran mammals added before it were members of Feliformia (cats, hyenas, civets, mongooses, etc).
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