(Image courtesy U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
Now that the first bears of summer are prowling the edges of mountain towns, it's time to dust off the old...
Maybe these will help keep our feet on the ground. Remember, people, we’re talking Smokey Bear Black Ursus americanus, not the oh-so-famous Ursus arctos horribilis Griz, in the following advice (especially about yelling, throwing rocks and the odds-on favorite in a fight).
Bear-Bait Management
• If you store your trash, tie it down, lock it up or — best of all — put it in a bear-proof dumpster.
• Don’t leave fallen fruit, pet food, birdseed, peanut butter, small pets or other tasty morsels lying about in the yard. Put an electric fence around compost pits.
• If you have lever handles on exterior doors, switch to round knobs. French doors? Good luck
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Should you encounter a Black Bear
[courtesy: American Bear Association (ABA), Colorado Division of Wildlife (CDOW)]
• “Stay calm (good luck!) — DO NOT RUN (running may elicit a chase response by the bear).” [ABA]
• “Stand still, stay calm and let the bear identify you and leave. Talk in a normal tone of voice. Be sure the bear has an escape route.” [CDOW]
• “Pick up children so they don't run or scream; restrain dog; avoid eye contact and talk in soothing voice.” [ABA]
• “Never run or climb a tree.” [CDOW]
• “If the bear stands up, he is NOT going to attack but is curious and wants a better sniff or view.” [ABA]
• “Wave your arms slowly overhead and talk calmly. If the bear huffs, pops it jaws or stomps a paw, it wants you to give it space.” [CDOW]
• “Slowly retreat from area or make wide detour around bear; don't crowd or block bear's escape route.” [ABA]
• “If you see cubs, their mother is usually close by. Leave the area immediately.” [CDOW]
If a Black Bear Approaches
“A bear knowingly approaching a person could be a food-conditioned bear looking for a handout or, very rarely, an aggressive bear. Stand your ground. Yell or throw small rocks in the direction of the bear. Get out your bear spray and use it when the bear is about 40 feet away. (B.’s note: Most bear spray manufacturers recommend waiting until the bear is less than 30 feet away.) If you’re attacked, don’t play dead. Fight back with anything available. People have successfully defended themselves with pen knives, trekking poles and even bare hands.” [CDOW]
Size Matters
There is talk of an 1,800-pounder, but the tale dates to the late 1800s, so if it’s still alive, you just might be able to take the old geezer in a foot or tree-climb race. Once again, good luck. Black Bear adults usually range from 150 to 550 pounds, and will gain up to 30-percent of their denning weight in the last couple of months of the feeding season. Because of this yearly fluctuation, official records go by skull size rather than body weight (alive or dead), but the highest confirmed weights for males I can find are 700 to 900 pounds, out of all bears killed in the last 15 years. Looks like these were Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin bears, if it makes you feel any better out West. Females are somewhat smaller, but require heightened wariness, and are usually worth a close look. As my favorite anthropologist has been known to murmur, “Sometimes, size just doesn’t matter.”
Read the rest of The Fatted Bear
(first published in Mountain Gazette #165 [March, 2010])
(first published in Mountain Gazette #165 [March, 2010])
