March 7, 2025, 9:52 am | Read time: 3 minutes
How well do you know bears? Are you a true nature expert or more of a teddy bear enthusiast? The big PETBOOK Bear Quiz will reveal the answer!
Brown bear, polar bear, panda bear–these names are familiar to everyone. But not all animals called “bear” actually belong to the family of large bears. Many people, for example, believe that koalas and raccoons are real bears–but is that really true? Our quiz explores which animals truly belong to the real bear family and which are just named that way. We’ve put together 16 tricky questions that only true nature fans can answer. This is about real bear species, their behavior, habitat, and unique characteristics.
How well do you know bears? Test your knowledge!
The Great PETBOOK Bear Quiz–Get Started Now!
Haven’t guessed enough yet? Check out more quizzes here:
- Under the Microscope! Can You Identify All 11 Animals in Close-Up?
- Shark Quiz for Pros! How Many Questions Can You Answer?
- From Snow Monkeys to Coatis–Do You Know Where These Animals Are Native?
- Which Animal Is the Largest, Smallest, Oldest? Do You Know the Answer?
Do You Know All 8 True Bears?
Why Pandas Are the Only Bears That Are Vegan
Can You Identify All 17 Rare Wild Cats in the Quiz?
Why Is the Giant Panda a Vegan with Carnivore Genes?
After our quiz, you might wonder why there are actually so few real bears. While many animals have “bear” in their name, only the brown bear, polar bear, American black bear, Asiatic black bear, sloth bear, sun bear, spectacled bear, and the giant panda truly belong. They all are part of the Ursidae family, also known as large bears or true bears, and share common traits like a robust body, strong claws, and a rather stocky build. More “bearish” facts and images of each animal can be found in this article: Do You Know All 8 Real Bears?
Animals like the raccoon, coati, or koala, on the other hand, are not real bears–even if their name suggests otherwise. Particularly curious: The giant panda is biologically classified as a true bear but still differs significantly from its relatives. Of the eight large bears still living today–as you just learned in the quiz–only one is vegan: the giant panda.
Yet, its body is actually designed for meat. Pandas belong to the order of carnivores and have the digestive tract of a meat-eater. Nevertheless, they feed almost exclusively on bamboo. This seems to be the result of clever adaptations, as studies show. You can learn more about this in this PETBOOK article: Why Pandas Are the Only Vegan Bears.