Few animals that live in the New England woods cause as much fear as the black bear. Black bears
are indeed dangerous animals and should be avoided, but a little knowledge and common sense is really all it takes to prevent a black bear attack. A few days ago, I happened to hear a noise outside and discovered evidence that a black bear had just been present.
The evidence included a bent steel trash can with teeth marks in the lid, and bear paw prints on the side of our chicken coop. The steel can contained chicken feed and the lid was secured by several straps which the bear was unable to remove to gain access. I was able to get the trailcam set up the next day and to get a few pictures, both with the trailcam and a regular camera (taken from the doorway, a considerable distance away).
Let me caution you that what I am writing here applies to black bears only, other species such as grizzly bears and polar bears are much more aggressive and do attack and kill humans with a much higher frequency. Black bears seldom attack people as prey. According to Mass. Wildlife, there have been about fifty cases of black bears killing humans in predatory attacks between 1900 and 2008. Of these, only 13 took place in the 48 lower United States. It does happen, but it's very rare.
Most black bear attacks happen when a bear is conditioned to expect food from humans. If the bear thinks you have food, it may be quite insistent in trying to acquire that food. This may involve coming very close and physically trying to take the food, bluff charges designed to scare you away from the food, or outright attacks. The New Hampshire Fish and Game Dept. cautions that a fed bear is a dead bear. Feeding a black bear is not a kindness, it is just setting the bear up for conflict with humans in the future, conflict that may result in a human injury, but most often results in the death of the bear.
Leaving bird feeders out in bear country once the snows melt is the most common way that people run into trouble with black bears. Black bears are omnivores, they'll eat almost anything from birdseed and garbage, to wild berries, small animals and carrion. They will also kill and eat chickens.
I have a chicken coop that is built to be bear-proof. While I don't doubt that a very insistent bear could get in if allowed to work on it for an extended period of time, it is made tough enough to discourage the bear and provide no quick rewards for his effort.
I bought this house in the woods because I like being surrounded by wild animals. I don't mind an occasional visit by a black bear, but I definitely do not want to encourage the bear to frequent my house or any other human habitation. That means making sure that everything that might provide the bear with a meal is securely locked away before dusk. We have hummingbird feeders that are brought inside each evening. I moved the chicken feed barrel to the inside of the garage, and I make sure the chicken coop is securely closed and locked by sunset each day.
The result is that the bear visited our yard for four nights in a row, but has only been back once in the two weeks since that initial string of visits. I can only hope the neighbors are being as cautious. I live near Little Blue Job Mountain which is covered in blueberry bushes. In the summer, the blueberry fields area strong attractant for black bears. Although I haven't seen them, I am told that if you visit the top of the mountain around 5:00 a.m. and clap your hands, as many as five or six bears will rear up from around the fields to see what made the noise. Once the blueberries come in July, I don't expect we'll see any hungry bears searching for food in our yard.
Meanwhile, when going out into the yard at or after dusk, I check for bears and make some noise to alert any that might be unseen to my presence. According to one study, black bear attacks occur most frequently when a human shows fear or weakness by such actions as running away. Prey runs away. If you run from the bear, the bear knows that it has nothing to fear from you and can attack with impunity. The second most likely circumstance for a bear attack is when a human behaves with indifference toward a bear's presence, just going about one's business as if the bear weren't there. In my opinion, this causes anxiety to the bear. You're not afraid of it, so you might be dangerous, but you're not attacking so perhaps an aggressive tack by the bear might drive you away. If you are acting indifferent to the bear, you may turn your back to it or present some other opportunity for it to take you by surprise.
The fewest black bear attacks occurred when the human took an aggressive stance. Never turn your back on the bear. Face it, back away slowly and carefully. Stay in a group, if possible. Black bears will often try to gauge your strength by pretending that it is going to attack and seeing if you bolt and run. A loud snort may precede a bluff charge. If you turn and run, you'll invite attack. Instead, stand your ground, try to appear as big as possible by raising your arms over your head, yell, and have any weapon you can find handy- a stick, a rock, a camera tripod, or anything you can use to strike the bear. If the bear does initiate an attack, hit it as hard as you can as many times as you can. Fight furiously to demonstrate that the bear will risk pain and injury if it continues to attack. Keep fighting for as long as it takes. Black bears don't often stop attacking when an adversary plays dead. Your odds are better fighting back.
Of course, that's a last resort, the bear is much more dangerous than you. Avoiding conflict is always the best course of action. When walking in places where there may be bears, make noise so any nearby bears will not be surprised. If you see a bear, do not approach it or turn your back. If a bear is near a dead animal upon which it has been feeding, it may actively defend the area. Give a very wide berth to any bear that doesn't immediately flee. Pay attention to the bear's body language. Often you can tell if an animal is agitated. Increasing the distance between you and the bear generally helps calm it while getting closer increases its alarm.
Most black bears will avoid human presence. The exception is when there is food in the area. This can be carrion, berry bushes, the smell of hamburgers cooked on your campfire, the sandwich in your backpack, or the bird feeder on your deck. Black bears are generally calm creatures, but they really don't like it when food is taken away from them or they are prevented from getting to food they know is present.
Quick Facts about the Black Bear (Ursus americanus)
Where do black bears live? According to National Geographic, black bears might travel a range of 25-80 square miles, which may well overlap with the territories of other black bears.
When is it here? Black bears are here all year round, although they will usually stay in their dens in a strong winter torpor. Despite popular opinion, black bears do not hibernate as deeply as some animals and may wake if disturbed during the winter. They may lose a quarter of their body weight during the winter and are quite hungry when they emerge in the spring, often searching out easy meals like bird feeders.
Life Cycle: A black bear will usually have two to three cubs which are born in the winter den. As the mother bear languishes in winter torpor, she will nurse the cubs until the snows melt and it warms enough to leave the den. The cubs will stay under the close protection of the mother bear for about two years.
What is the lifespan of a black bear? National Geographic says the average lifespan of a black bear in the wild is 20 years, but the average may be considerably less in areas where they are actively hunted.
How big do black bears get? Although they can get as heavy as 600 pounds, that is an exceptionally large bear, especially for New England. A very large adult here may be about 400 pounds with 250 pounds being the more common upper limit for an adult male in New Hampshire. Females may be half the size of a male. Adult black bears are about five to six feet in length (nose to tail). Black bears may be about three feet tall from the ground, but can rear up on their hind legs to more than double this height, especially to reach food like a bird feeder hanging from the eaves of a house. Bird feeders above eight feet high are generally safe from a bear, although the bear can smell birdseed from a mile away and may be attracted to the area even if it can't reach the feeder. Spilled seed on the ground may be enough to keep it coming back night after night.
What do black bears eat? The short answer is almost anything. The long answer is insects (including wasps and bees), small animals, grasses, berries, fruit, seeds, most human food, garbage, carrion, honey, and pet food.
Appearance: A black bear's coat is generally black, but may be a very dark brown. A black bear may or may not have a white patch on the underside of its chest. The muzzle tends toward brown regardless of the bear's main coloration. Black bears blend into shadow very well and are extremely difficult to spot in the dark, especially if they are holding still.
What do bear tracks look like? Black bears have five toes with non-retractable claws. (See the photos below.) The rear foot is longer and almost human shaped. An adult hind foot print may be roughly eight inches long, give or take. The front footprint is shorter, lacking a defined heel and may be 4-5 inches in length. Bear feet are wide, about five inches from side to side. Depending upon the type of ground, claw marks may be present in front of each toe. In soft dirt or dust, fur marks may be visible around the outline of the foot.
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| Black bear (Ursus americanus) Photo by Brad Sylvester, all rights reserved. |
The evidence included a bent steel trash can with teeth marks in the lid, and bear paw prints on the side of our chicken coop. The steel can contained chicken feed and the lid was secured by several straps which the bear was unable to remove to gain access. I was able to get the trailcam set up the next day and to get a few pictures, both with the trailcam and a regular camera (taken from the doorway, a considerable distance away).
Let me caution you that what I am writing here applies to black bears only, other species such as grizzly bears and polar bears are much more aggressive and do attack and kill humans with a much higher frequency. Black bears seldom attack people as prey. According to Mass. Wildlife, there have been about fifty cases of black bears killing humans in predatory attacks between 1900 and 2008. Of these, only 13 took place in the 48 lower United States. It does happen, but it's very rare.
Most black bear attacks happen when a bear is conditioned to expect food from humans. If the bear thinks you have food, it may be quite insistent in trying to acquire that food. This may involve coming very close and physically trying to take the food, bluff charges designed to scare you away from the food, or outright attacks. The New Hampshire Fish and Game Dept. cautions that a fed bear is a dead bear. Feeding a black bear is not a kindness, it is just setting the bear up for conflict with humans in the future, conflict that may result in a human injury, but most often results in the death of the bear.
I have a chicken coop that is built to be bear-proof. While I don't doubt that a very insistent bear could get in if allowed to work on it for an extended period of time, it is made tough enough to discourage the bear and provide no quick rewards for his effort.
I bought this house in the woods because I like being surrounded by wild animals. I don't mind an occasional visit by a black bear, but I definitely do not want to encourage the bear to frequent my house or any other human habitation. That means making sure that everything that might provide the bear with a meal is securely locked away before dusk. We have hummingbird feeders that are brought inside each evening. I moved the chicken feed barrel to the inside of the garage, and I make sure the chicken coop is securely closed and locked by sunset each day.
Meanwhile, when going out into the yard at or after dusk, I check for bears and make some noise to alert any that might be unseen to my presence. According to one study, black bear attacks occur most frequently when a human shows fear or weakness by such actions as running away. Prey runs away. If you run from the bear, the bear knows that it has nothing to fear from you and can attack with impunity. The second most likely circumstance for a bear attack is when a human behaves with indifference toward a bear's presence, just going about one's business as if the bear weren't there. In my opinion, this causes anxiety to the bear. You're not afraid of it, so you might be dangerous, but you're not attacking so perhaps an aggressive tack by the bear might drive you away. If you are acting indifferent to the bear, you may turn your back to it or present some other opportunity for it to take you by surprise.
The fewest black bear attacks occurred when the human took an aggressive stance. Never turn your back on the bear. Face it, back away slowly and carefully. Stay in a group, if possible. Black bears will often try to gauge your strength by pretending that it is going to attack and seeing if you bolt and run. A loud snort may precede a bluff charge. If you turn and run, you'll invite attack. Instead, stand your ground, try to appear as big as possible by raising your arms over your head, yell, and have any weapon you can find handy- a stick, a rock, a camera tripod, or anything you can use to strike the bear. If the bear does initiate an attack, hit it as hard as you can as many times as you can. Fight furiously to demonstrate that the bear will risk pain and injury if it continues to attack. Keep fighting for as long as it takes. Black bears don't often stop attacking when an adversary plays dead. Your odds are better fighting back.
Of course, that's a last resort, the bear is much more dangerous than you. Avoiding conflict is always the best course of action. When walking in places where there may be bears, make noise so any nearby bears will not be surprised. If you see a bear, do not approach it or turn your back. If a bear is near a dead animal upon which it has been feeding, it may actively defend the area. Give a very wide berth to any bear that doesn't immediately flee. Pay attention to the bear's body language. Often you can tell if an animal is agitated. Increasing the distance between you and the bear generally helps calm it while getting closer increases its alarm.
Most black bears will avoid human presence. The exception is when there is food in the area. This can be carrion, berry bushes, the smell of hamburgers cooked on your campfire, the sandwich in your backpack, or the bird feeder on your deck. Black bears are generally calm creatures, but they really don't like it when food is taken away from them or they are prevented from getting to food they know is present.
Quick Facts about the Black Bear (Ursus americanus)
Where do black bears live? According to National Geographic, black bears might travel a range of 25-80 square miles, which may well overlap with the territories of other black bears.
When is it here? Black bears are here all year round, although they will usually stay in their dens in a strong winter torpor. Despite popular opinion, black bears do not hibernate as deeply as some animals and may wake if disturbed during the winter. They may lose a quarter of their body weight during the winter and are quite hungry when they emerge in the spring, often searching out easy meals like bird feeders.
Life Cycle: A black bear will usually have two to three cubs which are born in the winter den. As the mother bear languishes in winter torpor, she will nurse the cubs until the snows melt and it warms enough to leave the den. The cubs will stay under the close protection of the mother bear for about two years.
What is the lifespan of a black bear? National Geographic says the average lifespan of a black bear in the wild is 20 years, but the average may be considerably less in areas where they are actively hunted.
How big do black bears get? Although they can get as heavy as 600 pounds, that is an exceptionally large bear, especially for New England. A very large adult here may be about 400 pounds with 250 pounds being the more common upper limit for an adult male in New Hampshire. Females may be half the size of a male. Adult black bears are about five to six feet in length (nose to tail). Black bears may be about three feet tall from the ground, but can rear up on their hind legs to more than double this height, especially to reach food like a bird feeder hanging from the eaves of a house. Bird feeders above eight feet high are generally safe from a bear, although the bear can smell birdseed from a mile away and may be attracted to the area even if it can't reach the feeder. Spilled seed on the ground may be enough to keep it coming back night after night.
What do black bears eat? The short answer is almost anything. The long answer is insects (including wasps and bees), small animals, grasses, berries, fruit, seeds, most human food, garbage, carrion, honey, and pet food.
Appearance: A black bear's coat is generally black, but may be a very dark brown. A black bear may or may not have a white patch on the underside of its chest. The muzzle tends toward brown regardless of the bear's main coloration. Black bears blend into shadow very well and are extremely difficult to spot in the dark, especially if they are holding still.
What do bear tracks look like? Black bears have five toes with non-retractable claws. (See the photos below.) The rear foot is longer and almost human shaped. An adult hind foot print may be roughly eight inches long, give or take. The front footprint is shorter, lacking a defined heel and may be 4-5 inches in length. Bear feet are wide, about five inches from side to side. Depending upon the type of ground, claw marks may be present in front of each toe. In soft dirt or dust, fur marks may be visible around the outline of the foot.
Bear prints indicated by black arrows. Raccoon and coyote
prints are also evident on the side of our chicken coop.
Photo by Brad Sylvester, all rights reserved.
Bear track in dried mud about two miles away from my yard.
Photo by Brad Sylvester, all rights reserved.
Follow me on Twitter @back2n8ure.
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