Understanding the Intelligence of Bears

Bear tours offer animal enthusiasts the chance to spend time with one of the most beautiful animals on our planet. But these incredible creatures are not only stunning to look at, they are also very intelligent and exhibit some very interesting behaviour as well. In fact, their intelligence is perhaps one of the most remarkable things about them and many experts believe they have the same IQ as that of the Great Apes.

Cognition and Reasoning

When you embark on specialised bear tours, you will have the opportunity to observe the animals in the wild, and it will quickly become apparent that their behaviour is purposeful. This is not surprising when you consider that Black Bears, for example, have a very large brain compared to their body size. They have an excellent long-term memory and an ability to navigate that is allegedly superior to humans.

Mother Black Bears spend up to three years with their cubs, showing them how to hunt and equipping them with the skills to survive. It takes this amount of time for the mother to impart all her knowledge and for the young cubs to form 'mental maps' to remember what they have been shown.

Using Tools

While exploring habitat on bear tours you will encounter plenty of signs of activity. They use sticks and branches to scratch themselves and often play with objects such as rocks, throwing them at each other for fun. If you are on one of the Polar Bear tours, you might even see one throwing a chunk of ice at a Walrus in an attempt to knock it out and make it an easier kill.

Self-Awareness

It's an interesting question to consider: do bears have any idea what they are and would they recognise themselves in a mirror? It has been noted that sometimes when the animals (in captivity) see their own reflection in a mirror they are frightened and may try to swat at it. Sometimes, however, they are curious and try to lick the mirror or bite at its surface to test out what it is. There is no way of knowing what they are really thinking, of course, so self-awareness theories remain just that.

Altruism

This is a key emotion linked to intelligence. There is no doubt that bears care for each other and their young. The mothers risk their own lives to defend their cubs and have been observed 'grieving' for their young or a dead mate. There is also evidence that young cubs grieve for their mother if she is killed in front of them. They may not dwell on their grief for as long as humans do but the emotion is definitely real.

There are many theories about the intelligence of bears, but the evidence definitely points to the fact that these animals certainly do possess a surprising quota.

Marissa Ellis-Snow is a freelance nature writer. If you’re looking for bear tours, Naturetrek specialises in expert-led natural history and wildlife tours worldwide. Naturetrek brings over 25 years of experience to polar expeditions and tours to other spectacular regions on Earth.

Writer and Online Marketing Manager in London.