Why are sloth bear populations threatened?
The sloth bear is listed as “vulnerable” by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), although this listing depends on estimates of abundance, distribution and probability of extinction. These types of data on population status are limited for most of its range. There is general consensus, however, that existing sloth bear populations are becoming increasingly fragmented and are disappearing from many areas of their former range. Most sloth bear populations outside protected areas are very likely to have disappeared. Both behavioral and life history characteristics of sloth bears place them at risk throughout most of their range, particularly where human densities are high and forests rapidly disappearing. This is especially so for India, Nepal and Sri Lanka, where both protected and unprotected areas in India and Sri Lanka experience heavy poaching and encroachment. Being large, aggressive carnivores, sloth bears require large areas of relatively undisturbed habit
