Bears as providers of ecosystem services

Large carnivores are considered necessary for the maintenance of biodiversity and ecosystem functions. At the same time their presence may also generate conflicts with pastoral and other human activities. However, bears do not always fit the definition of carnivores in their habitat, having divers foraging strategies. The results of this literature review supported the crucial role played by all bear species in providing a diverse array of ecosystem services. While bears from North America and Europe have been extensively studied, species from South America and Southeast Asia have received relatively less attention. The main benefits derived from bears encompass recreation and cultural value, while also contributing to biodiversity maintenance through seed dispersal and forest shaping as ecosystem engineers. However, knowledge gaps persist regarding the ecosystem services provided by bears with tropical distributions. The economic impact of the Ecosystem services provided by bears is reported in a minority of works, with limited transferability, but globally recreation revenues largely exceed those related to hunting. Limitations such as resource constraints, social dynamics, and restricted access to remote areas call for future more interdisciplinary research in general and especially on tropical bear species.