Approximate Dates of Origin of Bear Species
from Bears of the World by Lance Craighead, Ph.D.
| SPECIES | DATE OF ORIGIN FROM FOSSIL EVIDENCE | DATE OF ORIGIN FROM GENETIC EVIDENCE | AREA OF ORIGIN |
Panda Bear Superfamily Ailuropodinae | > 15 MYA* Agriarctos | 18-22 MYA* | Central Asia |
Short-faced Bear Superfamily Tremarctinae | > 6 MYA* Plionarctos | 12-15 MYA* | North America |
Giant Short-faced Bear Artodus simus | North America | ||
Spectacled Bear Tremarctos ornatus | South America | ||
True Bear Family Ursidae | > 5 MYA* Ursus minimus | 4-8 MYA* | Northeastern Asia |
Sloth Bear Ursus ursinus | 7 MYA* | South-central Asia (India?) | |
Sun Bear Ursus malayanus | 5 MYA* | South-east Asia (Islands?) | |
Asiatic Black Bear Ursus thibetanus | 5 MYA* | Central Asia (Himalayas?) | |
American Black Bear Ursus americanus | > 3.5 MYA* | 5 MYA* | North America |
Giant Panda Ailuropoda melanoleuca | > 600,000 years ago | Central Asia (China?) | |
Brown Bear Ursus arctos | > 500,000 years ago (China) > 900,000 years ago (France) | 1 MYA* | Northern Asia |
Polar Bear Ursus maritimus | c 300,000 years ago | 1 MYA* | Northern Siberia |
Cave Bear Ursus spelaus | > 300,000 years ago (Europe) | Europe |
* million years ago
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