The bear family is no stranger to being sizeable, standing firm at the top of the world’s largest land-dwelling carnivorans . Still, even the biggest groups have their smaller members, and the title for the smallest bear of all goes to a unique, freakishly long-tongued, and weirdly human-like animal: the sun bear ( Helarctos malayanus ). The rest of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or subscribe to access the full content.

The world’s smallest bear

The sun bear is the world’s smallest bear species, measuring in at around 1.1 to 1.4 meters (3.6 to 4.6 feet) long. That’s at least half the size of a polar or Kodiak bear – the world’s largest bears – which can reach up to 2.6 and 3 meters (8.4 and 10 feet) long, respectively.

Sun bears’ size shouldn’t be taken to mean t

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