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The diet of the fossil bear Ursus spelaeus has been debated extensively. U. spelaeus is thought to have been herbivorous, but the exact composition of its diet remains unclear. To test this, the cranial morphology of U. spelaeus was analysed using 3D geometric morphometrics and compared to that of extant Ursidae. An approach including the Ursus species with a varied diet (brown, and American and Asiatic black bears) allows for a more precise focus on food items that are directly relevant to the question of the diet of U. spelaeus.

Landmarks for 3D digitisation of the cranium were chosen to reflect functional morphology relating to the attachment of the musculus temporalis and m. masseter and general shape of the cranium. Extant Ursidae and the extinct U. spelaeus were digitised with a Microscribe G2. Generalised Procrustes superimposition was performed on the coordinates and allometry corrected for using …