People have always had a fascination with bears. Many animals either look terrifying ugly or cute and cuddly; bears manage to pull off both. However, when they are cubs, their cuteness is off the carts! Black bears are found exclusively on the North American continent ranging from as far south as Northern Mexico up to Alaska and Canada. A female black bear will usually birth between one and three cubs. When cubs are born, they live with their mom in a warm den during the winter. The average black bear cub weighs about half a pound to a full pound at birth. Cubs are also born totally blind.
However, these cute critters put on weight very quickly, and their mom spends about a year and a half feeding, weening, and teaching them how to survive. And before they are two years old, black bear cubs will venture out on their own. However, many black bears are endangered due to their only natural predator — man. These creatures are routinely hunted for sport. Today the total black bear population is estimated to range between 600,000 and 700,00 (not including cubs). About 55 percent are found in Canada, 40 percent reside in the U.S, and 5 percent live in Mexico. In this 2017 video, Robert Irwin, son of the late Steve “Crocodile Hunter” Irwin, visits the Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and brings along a few super cute black bear cubs.
Image via YouTube
At the start of the video, Robert and Steve chat a bit about his last appearance on the show and how much of a buzz it created on the internet. Jimmy then pulled out a side-by-side photo of Robert and Steve at his age, and the two talked about their striking similarities. After, Robert introduces his first animal, Jane, a dictator scorpion. The young man tries to assure Jimmy that “she’s actually quite friendly,” but the host wisely abstains from holding her. Following Jane’s appearance, Jimmy asks the teen if he has “anything more cute,” to which Robert responds, “Well, this one is a little bit more cute.” And that’s when his people bring out two ridiculously adorable baby black bears named d-9 and Flow. Let’s just say these adorable fur babies really had quite a taste for Jimmy!
Image via YouTube
Check out Jimmy’s first up-close and personal bear experience in the video below.
