| |
All Coexistence Articles
If you’ve been watching the news this week you no doubt came across the report of a bear attack near Timmins, Ontario resulting in serious injuries to a 30-year old man, the death of his dog, and the resulting death of the bear. The story is horrible as it is rare and we’re thankful the story didn’t end with the man’s funeral.
As an advocacy group for bears it is difficult for us to hear these stories and they remind us of how important our role of educating people in bear country is to the peaceful co-existence of humans and bears. At the Get Bear Smart Society we believe humans and bears can safely and respectfully coexist and we also believe it takes some intentionality.
In this paper the authors tested the ability to use stable isotope analysis (by plucking hair from captured bears) to quantify garbage in bear diet. They contrasted hairs taken from spring harvested bears and bear captures in Missoula, Montana in 2009. Results: 1. Stable isotopes seem promising for actually identifying garbage in diet, but there are still some issues to be worked out; 2. Garbage was not a significant food source for bears around Missoula in 2008.
Ghost Grizzlies and Other Rare Bruins features stunning photos of Ghosts and other rare varieties, such as Basalt, Ebony, and Lava grizzly/brown bears. It also shares the adventures of two Ghost grizzly cubs. Finally, it teaches you expert techniques for identifying the variety, sex and age/maturity of a bear, as well as how to recognize bears as individuals.
What in the world is happening to our planet and why? We live in a wounded world that is in dire need of healing. We all should be troubled and terrified by what we have done and continue to do. Humans have made huge and horrific global messes that need to be repaired now. The overriding sense of turmoil is apparent to anyone who takes the time to pay attention. Researchers and non-researchers alike are extremely concerned about unprecedented global losses of biodiversity and how humans suffer because of our destructive ways. We are animals and we should be proud and aware of our membership in the animal kingdom. However, our unique contribution to the decimation of the planet and its many life forms demeans us.
Animal collisions pose a risk to wildlife, people and their property. Help us to reduce the staggering number of incidents by following these guidelines.........
The authors believe that communication within and among agency personnel in the United States and Canada about the successes and failures of their human-bear (Ursidae) management programs will increase the effectiveness of these programs and of bear research. To communicate more effectively, they suggest agencies clearly define terms and concepts used in human-bear management and use them in a consistent manner. They constructed a human-bear management lexicon of terms and concepts using a modified Delphi method to provide a resource that facilitates more effective communication among human-bear management agencies.
Recently, the Grizzly Bear Outreach Project (GBOP) team skyped Get Bear Smart to learn more about creating bear smart communities in Washington. I'm sure many of you have the same questions, so I thought I'd provide a summary of the conversation.
Today Lily, the black bear, gave birth live, in real time, for thousands of dedicated fans to watch courtesy of a den cam. The cam is broadcasting live from her den near Ely in Northeastern Minnesota, USA, less than 30 miles from the Canadian border. Since her Facebook page was created on January 8th, she has accumulated over 50,000 devoted, enthusiastic fans. Even I can't stay away from the site. I have a window open on my computer screen so I can keep track whenever I'm at my desk. I have to admit it's been a bit addictive, but undeniably fascinating.
Diversionary feeding of black bears (Ursus americanus) around campgrounds and residential areas has received little study because of concerns it might create nuisance bears and jeopardize public safety. To evaluate those concerns and assess its effectiveness in mitigating human-bear conflict, we studied diversionary feeding at a U. S. Forest Service campground/residential complex that had been a perennial focus of human-bear conflict.
The small and isolated population of brown bears (Ursus arctos marsicanus) in the Central Apennines, Italy, has been protected since the establishment of the National Park of Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise in 1923, but little active management has been implemented during the past decades to ensure effective conservation of this population. Being almost exclusively distributed within the National Park and its immediate surrounding mountains, the Apennine brown bear population suffered high human-caused mortality in the last 3 decades, but no reliable estimates of its size, trends, and vital statistics have ever been produced. Given the paucity of
information available at the international level, the authors have critically reviewed the status of the Apennine brown bear population and have summarized data and information concerning past management.
A must read guide for every bear viewer and anyone else who might face close encounters.
People are increasingly moving into black bear (Ursus americanus) habitat, seeing more bears, and often feeding them intentionally or unintentionally. There are many untested beliefs about the effects this supplemental feeding has on bear behavior, food preferences, natural foraging activities, relations with humans, and longevity. This study compares bears receiving supplemental food with those in a nearby study area where bears were not supplementally fed (Rogers 1987;Rogers, unpublished data).
This article summarizes recommendations from the 5th IUCN World Parks Congress workshop held in Durban, South Africa in September of 2004, and introduces the other articles in this special issue of Human Dimensions of Wildlife.
The Question: Is increasing human activity affecting the behavior of black bears
along the Park’s coastline?
Black bears (Ursus americanus) are abundant along the Kenai Fjords National Park
coastline. In the springtime, when much of the land is still buried under snow,
black bears leave their winter dens and rely heavily on the intertidal zone and
nearshore meadows, where vegetation emerges the earliest, for food. The same
beaches and meadows are becoming increasingly popular with kayak campers and
other Park visitors. How critical are these meadows to the bears? Does human
presence affect the bears’ use of these areas?
Although open garbage pits are being phased out, hundreds remain, especially in black bear habitat. This paper reviews and summarizes information on the use of dumps by black bears and on bear-human interactions in northeastern Minnesota. The data were collected during ecological studies of black bears during 1969-1986.
|
|
|
