Special Feature

Fall is a busy time for bear managers

Each fall, black and grizzly bear activity picks up as bears of both species prepare for the upcoming winter. Bears begin searching out food sources and foraging at a greater rate than during the summer, increasing the risk they will find unnatural food and come in conflict with people.

"When they find food, natural or unnatural, they will hang around until the food source is entirely consumed or eliminated." said Stacy Courville, a Tribal Wildlife Biologist who specializes in bear management.

When unnatural items, such as garbage, fruit on fruit trees or other food sources are available at a site repeatedly, the bear will develop an immediate dependence upon the food source and will return regularly until the food source is no longer available. When these return visits are in someone's back yard, the potential for conflict is high. "The conflicts will continue," said Courville. "The only long-term solutions are to eliminate the attractants, make the attractants unavailable to bears, relocate or eliminate the bears."

Courville emphasizes that even if people do not mind a bear in their yard, eating fruit, or tipping over their garbage, they should try to prevent it. The bear is learning a behavior that may not be tolerated by neighbors. As bears get more used to feeding around people, they tend to become more aggressive and eventually may have to be killed.

"Setting a trap is not the first response to a bear call," said Frank Gillin, Tribal Fish and Game Program Manager. "We attempt to work with people to inform them and to get them to correct problems which are attracting bears." Trapping and relocating a conflict bear is not always a solution because many relocated bears are able to find their way back to the attractant quickly or may be prone to seek out other similar attractants elsewhere.

According to Courville, trapping and relocating an animal may provide a short-term fix for a conflict but it does not provide a permanent solution. If nothing is done to remove the attractant, the bear will return or another one eventually finds the attractant and a new conflict arises.

Residential housing units in or near bear country provide easy access for bears to a food source that is readily available. In the spring, a bear will usually return to the last place that they found food in the fall. In the fall, bears preparing for winter hibernation may range out into open country to seek out new food sources. In order to prevent a human-bear conflict the homeowner needs to be aware of the responsibilities that come with living in bear country.

The primary attractants for bears include pet food, livestock feed, garbage, bird feeders, barbecues, fruit trees, dead livestock and compost piles. For more information on eliminating bear attractants contact Germaine White at 883-2888, ext. 7299.