The story long ago found a permanent place in American lore.

President Theodore (Teddy) Roosevelt was hunting in the woods of Mississippi in the fall of 1902 when a black bear of modest stature emerged from the trees and was hemmed in by hunting dogs. The “Rough Rider,” far from shrinking in the bear’s slight shadow, raised his rifle to shoot and in the same moment decided it unsporting to kill a bear not much larger than one of the dogs. When word of Roosevelt’s act of mercy reached home, Washington Post artist Clifford K. Berryman drew an amusing cartoon titled “Drawing the line in Mississippi.” The cartoon tickled the country, and soon entrepreneurs were cashing in on stuffed toys that became known as teddy bears.

It’s possible you’ve had your own encounter – though less famous than Roosevelt’s and at a much safer distance – with an American black bear. They’ve been roaming the continent for centuries, and seeing one today is fairly common since black bears still live throughout North America from Alaska to Mexico. Although extinct in Illinois and Iowa, black bears live in at least 40 states, including Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota. They thrive mainly in regions with relatively undisturbed forests, in either arid or moist climates.

The bears’ exhibit at the Children’s Zoo is designed for close observation of the animals in a naturalistic setting. Viewing areas include a waterfall, a stream and a pool, which will be periodically stocked with fish for the bears to hunt. Holes in an artificial tree in the exhibit will be filled with treats for the bears. Kids and bears can come face to face by crawling into a hollowed out tree trunk that is divided by a glass partition.

Although called “black” bears, the species covers a range of colors, from jet black to white, which is the subspecies Ursus americanus kermodii. The Kermode or “spirit” bear lives in parts of the west coast of Canada. People sometimes mistake larger cinnamon black bears for grizzlies. Some fairly obvious differences distinguish the two species: Black bears have no shoulder hump, larger ears that stick up on the head and curved claws for climbing trees. Black bears also are far less aggressive than grizzlies.

Black bears are known for their shyness and can be easily frightened away by humans. They should not, however, be regarded as cute and cuddly, despite the long-ago cartoonist’s comical depiction of the first “teddy” bear. They will attack in defense and have killed some 40 humans over the past century.

In parts of the U.S., particularly the northeast and the mid-Atlantic states, the population of black bears is increasing due to several factors: improving quality of wetlands and forest, bear management programs in many states, and law-enforcement efforts to reduce illegal hunting.

Habitat alteration and fragmentation still concern conservationists, as do improved hunting techniques and poaching. Aside from legal hunting, bears are most often killed for the illegal trade in bears parts. Gallbladders, for instance, are used as cures in Chinese medicine. A gallbladder sells for as much as $10,000 in East Asia. In Korea, bear paws are a delicacy, often used in a bowl of soup that costs hundreds of dollars.

Some black bears weigh up to 700 pounds and can sprint up to 30 miles per hour for a short distance. With their small, round, wide-set eyes, they see at least as well as humans, though they are nearsighted. Cubs are born with blue eyes that turn brown. Their sense of smell is many times greater than that of a bloodhound, and anecdotal information suggests bears will travel miles to track down the scent of carrion.

Black bears adapt well to human disturbance, which sometimes throws the two species into conflict, often when bears are enticed by food to interact with humans.

While black bears are naturally skittish of humans, they are curious and do not recognize property lines, especially if they get a whiff of food. That can include just about anything: camp leftovers, sugar water from hummingbird feeders, overripe fruits and vegetables from farm fields and garbage. They’ll scrounge camping grounds or backyards to satiate their constant hunger. The bears’ main menu in the wild consists mostly of berries, nuts, grasses and insect larvae, but they are omnivores and will eat meat too, such as carrion, or steaks from a barbecue grill. Like their cousins the grizzlies, black bears in Canada and Alaska will feed on spawning salmon.

In the wild, black bears do not actually hibernate. They do become inactive, a state called “torpor.” During this winter snooze their metabolism slows to a point where they don’t need to eat, drink, urinate or defecate until they emerge from their dens in early spring. If they’re seen licking tender footpads, that’s because they shed the old ones during the winter.