Spectacled bear welfare in zoos addresses the unique needs of the only bear native to South America, including foraging ecology, arboreal tendencies and social management.
Spectacled bear welfare management requires accommodating their unique status as the most arboreal bear species, with climbing structures as a welfare priority beyond most other bear management programs. Dietary variety that reflects their omnivorous wild diet — fruit, plant material, insects and occasional vertebrate prey — provides behavioral diversity and nutritional adequacy. Their relatively social nature compared to other bears allows some flexibility in social housing but still requires individual management capability. Foraging enrichment that extends time engaged with food items, as wild bears spend many hours accessing challenging food sources, provides cognitive engagement and behavioral diversity. Conservation education value of spectacled bears raises the stakes for high-quality welfare management.