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The Atlas Bear (Ursus arctos crowtheri) was a subspecies
Subspecies

In biology, subspecies is the taxonomic rank immediately subordinate to a species. A subspecies is a taxonomic group which is less distinct than the Common descent or species from which it originates....
 of the Brown Bear
Brown Bear

The Brown Bear is a large bear distributed across much of northern Eurasia and North America. It weighs 100 to 700 kg and its larger populations such as the Kodiak bear match the Polar bear as the largest extant land predator....
, but is sometimes considered a distinct species
Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring....
. It was Africa
Africa

Africa is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km? including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area....
's only native bear
Bear

Bears are mammals of the family Ursidae. Bears are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans, with the pinnipeds being their closest living relatives....
. Once inhabiting the Atlas Mountains
Atlas Mountains

The Atlas Mountains are a mountain range across a northern stretch of Africa extending about 2,400 km through Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. The highest peak is Jbel Toubkal, with an elevation of in southwestern Morocco....
 and neighboring areas, from Morocco
Morocco

Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa with a population of nearly 34 million and an area just under 447,000 km2....
 to Libya
Libya

Libya , officially the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya , is a country located in North Africa. Bordering the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Libya lies between Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
, the animal is now thought to be extinct. Thousands of these bears were hunted for sport, venatio
Venatio

Venatio was a form of entertainment in Ancient Rome amphitheaters involving the hunting and slaying of wild animals. Exotic wild beasts from the far reaches of the Roman Empire were brought to Rome and hunts were held in the morning prior to the afternoon main event of gladiatorial duels....
 games, or execution of criminals ad bestias following the expansion of the Roman Empire
Roman Empire

The Roman Empire was the Roman Republic phase of the Ancient Rome, characterised by an autocracy form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
 into North Africa
North Africa

North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, separated by the Sahara from Sub-Saharan Africa.Geopolitically, the United Nations subregion of Northern Africa includes the following seven countries or territories:...
.






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The Atlas Bear (Ursus arctos crowtheri) was a subspecies
Subspecies

In biology, subspecies is the taxonomic rank immediately subordinate to a species. A subspecies is a taxonomic group which is less distinct than the Common descent or species from which it originates....
 of the Brown Bear
Brown Bear

The Brown Bear is a large bear distributed across much of northern Eurasia and North America. It weighs 100 to 700 kg and its larger populations such as the Kodiak bear match the Polar bear as the largest extant land predator....
, but is sometimes considered a distinct species
Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring....
. It was Africa
Africa

Africa is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km? including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area....
's only native bear
Bear

Bears are mammals of the family Ursidae. Bears are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans, with the pinnipeds being their closest living relatives....
. Once inhabiting the Atlas Mountains
Atlas Mountains

The Atlas Mountains are a mountain range across a northern stretch of Africa extending about 2,400 km through Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. The highest peak is Jbel Toubkal, with an elevation of in southwestern Morocco....
 and neighboring areas, from Morocco
Morocco

Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa with a population of nearly 34 million and an area just under 447,000 km2....
 to Libya
Libya

Libya , officially the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya , is a country located in North Africa. Bordering the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Libya lies between Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
, the animal is now thought to be extinct. Thousands of these bears were hunted for sport, venatio
Venatio

Venatio was a form of entertainment in Ancient Rome amphitheaters involving the hunting and slaying of wild animals. Exotic wild beasts from the far reaches of the Roman Empire were brought to Rome and hunts were held in the morning prior to the afternoon main event of gladiatorial duels....
 games, or execution of criminals ad bestias following the expansion of the Roman Empire
Roman Empire

The Roman Empire was the Roman Republic phase of the Ancient Rome, characterised by an autocracy form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
 into North Africa
North Africa

North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, separated by the Sahara from Sub-Saharan Africa.Geopolitically, the United Nations subregion of Northern Africa includes the following seven countries or territories:...
. The last known specimen was probably killed by hunters in the 1870s in the Rif
Rif

The Rif is a mainly mountainous region of northern Morocco, stretching from Cape Spartel and Tangier in the west to Ras Kebdana and the Moulouya River in the east, and from the Mediterranean Sea in the north to the river of Ouargha in the south....
 mountains of northern Morocco, although reports still surface.

Sometimes, it is suggested that this animal might still be alive in eastern Africa, and is the source of the cryptid
Cryptid

Cryptid is a term which is used in the pseudoscience of cryptozoology to refer to a creature whose existence has been suggested by cryptozoologists but lacks scientific support....
 known as the nandi bear
Nandi Bear

The Nandi Bear is a cryptid, or unconfirmed animal, reported to live in Africa. It takes its name from the Nandi people who live in western Kenya, near where the Nandi Bear is reported as living....
. This is essentially ruled out by biogeography
Biogeography

Biogeography is the study of the distribution of biodiversity over space and time. It aims to reveal where organisms live, and at what abundance....
, however. Nonetheless, as the known distribution of the Atlas Bear is a relict
Relict

The term relict is used to refer to surviving remnants of natural phenomena. Compare relic which is used to refer to human artifacts or remains....
 of the desertification
Desertification

Desertification is the degradation of land in arid and dry Humid subtropical climate areas, resulting primarily from natural activities and influenced by Climate variations....
 of the Sahara
Sahara

The Sahara is the world's largest hot desert. At over 9,000,000 square kilometers , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as the United States or the continent of Europe....
, its ancestor may have been widespread in northern and eastern Africa in prehistoric times.

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