Photo Credit: David Luck

Lions and tigers and…oh, no bears? Oh my! Well, we still think Africa is one of the most amazing wildlife destinations on the planet, hands down.

Bears have lived in the wild on all continents except Australia and Antarctica. Fossil records and historical data indicate that there were likely hundreds of bear species globally at one time. Today, however, only eight bear species remain in North and South America, Europe and Asia.

While there were bear species in Africa historically, the Atlas bear in Northern Africa (named after the same mountain range) was thought to be Africa’s only native bear that survived into modern times. Once inhabiting the Atlas Mountains and neighboring areas, from Morocco to Libya, the last of its kind was thought to have been killed in 1870. The Atlas bear was brownish-black in color, a suspected subspecies of the brown bear.

So, if you want to see wild lions and tigers and…oh wait, tigers aren’t native to Africa either! In fact, they exist – and are endangered – only in India, Nepal, Indonesia, Russia and China.

Well then, if you want to see lions in the wild then be sure to check out an exciting, life-changing African Safari by Natural Habitat Adventures. But if you want to see the king of the wild north rather than the king of the jungle, be sure to check out their incredible brown and polar bear trips, where you can get up close (but not too close and personal!) with these incredible creatures!