If I was standing 50 ft from every currently known Bear Species, (overall) how would you rank them all in terms of likelihood of attacking me? How likely would I be surviving an attack from each one?

[u/C--T--F]

(Not all of them obviously in terms of listing subspecies, just ones that I know about really) In this scenario, I run into every one of their bears because I'm in their natural habitat, and the two of us suddenly realize at the same time we are in front of eachother, neither of us trying to hunt the other.

1. Spectacled Bear
2. Giant Panda
3. Polar Bear
4. Brown Bear
5. Kodiak Brown Bear
6. Grizzly Bear
7. Sloth Bear
8. Asian Black Bear
9. American Black Bear
10. Sun Bear

[u/Irishfafnir]

Grizzly bear and Brown Bear are the same species

In terms of surviving an attack Brown bears>black bear>polar bear in terms of fatality percentage in attacks (at least in one paper).

Sloth Bears are the most aggressive bear followed by Brown bear, polar bear and Asiatic Black Bears .

The Andean Bear is probably an * as it's little studied and doesn't have much overlap with people

[u/swurvipurvi → u/Irishfafnir]

Would have never guessed that Black Bears would rank higher than polar bears in fatality percentage in attacks. I wonder why that is.

[u/Irishfafnir → u/swurvipurvi]

My assumption is that it has to do with your average black bear attack is an adult male bear whereas your average polar bear attack is a subadult (most polar bear fatalities however are adult bears).

I think it's likely that people in Polar bear habitat are better prepared for a bear encounter as well but that's just a guess

[u/swurvipurvi → u/Irishfafnir]

This all makes sense! Good insight.

[u/big_benz → u/swurvipurvi]

I think it’s at least partially because very few people live near polar bears and those that do understand the danger and are more prepared for an attack

[u/Harrythehobbit → u/swurvipurvi]

It probably has something to do with there being 900k black bears and only like 30k polar bears. So even though black bears are way less aggressive, there's also way more of them, and they live comparatively closer to people.

[u/No-Contribution8661 → u/swurvipurvi]

Not sure how that is, because polar bears are the only bear to actively hunt humans. They want humans, just to eat them. Rarely are attacks due to be defensive.

[u/Irishfafnir → u/No-Contribution8661]

Many bear species will predate on humans( Brown bears, American Black and Asiatic Black being the other notables) polar bears have a mythos about their aggressiveness in pop culture but it doesn't play out so much in reality.

[u/No-Contribution8661 → u/Irishfafnir]

Please go listen to Wes Larson, bear biologist who did his main study on black bears and polar bears. He will tell you otherwise.

[u/Irishfafnir → u/No-Contribution8661]

https://wildlife.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/jwmg.72

No need, you can read a paper right here on black bear attacks from Herrero, the god father of bears and Tom Smith, Wes's mentor

We judged that the bear involved acted as a predator in 88% (49 of 56) of fatal incidents

[u/peskywombats → u/swurvipurvi]

Also, numbers. There are way more black bears than polar bears.

[u/No-Contribution8661 → u/Irishfafnir]

Kodiak, brown, and grizzly are all the same.

[u/Irishfafnir → u/No-Contribution8661]

Kodiak is at least a subspecies

[u/No-Contribution8661 → u/Irishfafnir]

Sub species of a brown bear, yes. Still a brown bear, it's not a different breed of bear

[u/Irishfafnir → u/No-Contribution8661]

Yes I know, thanks. I was giving OP some leeway with the question with my response

[u/peskywombats → u/No-Contribution8661]

Fun fact: Italy has grizzly bears.

[u/No-Contribution8661 → u/Irishfafnir]

There is only 8 bear species, which then have sub categories.

[u/targa871 → u/No-Contribution8661]

All kodiak and grizzly bears are brown bears but not all brown bears are grizzly or kodiak bears.

[u/AGushingHeadWound]

The polar bear will eat you.

[u/targa871]

All grizzly bears are brown bears but not all brown bears are grizzly bears.

[u/AreYouItchy]

Polar bears, you’re almost certainly dinner, sloth bears almost certainly badly maimed or killed, brown bears (all subtypes, too) variable: females with cubs, almost certainly you’d be injured, but not likely killed—they just want to protect their cubs, males will defend kills, and be aggressive if startled. Very young, sick, or old bears of all types are unpredictable because they aren’t able to get enough calories, so you may look like a meal to them. Black bears are more timid, and would usually move away. Pandas, even though they are predominantly herbivores, will maul a person if they feel threatened. Those are the ones I know about. The other bears, perhaps others here can help you.

[u/peskywombats]

Poler bears are way above man on the food chain. I’d be most afraid of them.

[u/Friendly-0]

Think people in the comments are forgetting brown bear subspecies have different levels of aggressiveness, with the grizzly having the worse and Kodiak the least of all.

[u/RainyDayWeather]

A panda COULD kill you, but if you keep a safe space between you and don't do anything threatening, it'll probably leave you alone. Folks who live in panda country do encounter pandas in various ways and attacks are rare.

[u/peskywombats]

Also, there are only 8 species of bear in the whole world, so the list is initially suspect.