Bears may be shifting how they use their range on the Rocky Mountain Front and in some other areas affected by this summer’s drought, according to Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks grizzly bear management specialist Mike Madel, based in Choteau. "It appears we’re seeing more black bears down low, hanging around campgrounds and in one case displaying atypical behavior in biting a young girl. The bear involved in this incident was in an area where we don’t expect to see black bears and was displaying a predatory behavior that is very unusual in a black bear," Madel said. In midsummer, bears are switching from eating green, flowering plants and insects to feeding on berries. A relatively mild spring with few freezes means that the chokecherry, buffaloberry and huckleberry crops should be plentiful in key bear habitats in the state. "The condition of these berry crops is very important to bears because it provides a significant source of the calories and nutrition they need now to prepare for hibernation," Madel said. "We’re already seeing black bears coming down around the water here in the Sun River country in anticipation of the chokecherries ripening." Madel recommends that campers be especially alert now for hungry bears, even in heavily used, developed campgrounds and around popular streams. "The drought may increase bear sightings. People sometimes get a false sense of security when they are in a developed campground," he says "There is some merit in taking the precaution, whether in grizzly bear habitat or not, of hanging food out of a bear’s reach in a tree away from your camp." Madel said a common mistake campers make is storing food in a sleeping tent or open automobile. If it is necessary to store food in an automobile, the trunk is the best location, or in the passenger compartment with the windows rolled up. "A very common, but serious error, is setting a cooler of food on the picnic table while in camp preparing a meal and then leaving it there when the campers go to sleep for the night," he said. "Humans may forget the cooler, but to a hungry bear a food opportunity like that is anything but forgettable." Whether bears accidentally get food from humans or are fed intentionally, they learn very quickly to come to humans and to homes for food, according to Tim Manley, FWP’s grizzly bear management specialist located in northwest Montana. Manley has spent the last few years reversing this food conditioning of bears by using specially trained Karelian Bear Dogs and "bear shepherding" techniques developed by the Wind River Bear Institute. FWP is working with Carrie Hunt, director of the WRBI, to test the method on Montana black bears and grizzlies to try to save bears who have made a habit of seeking human food. "Bear shepherding" work, which uses the specially trained Karelian Bear Dogs, rubber bullets and beanbag rounds to create a negative association for the bear when in human territory, is being researched and tested in northwestern Montana and is not readily available across the state. "Bears who have learned to come to houses to eat are dead bears in a very short time, in most cases, unless we succeed in teaching them to avoid human territory," Manley says. While bears conditioned to human food can be turned around, as Hunt and Manley have demonstrated, the process can be costly and time consuming. "The best and first choice is to ensure a bear doesn’t have access to human food sources in the first place. People can greatly increase a bear’s chance of survival if they take the time to learn what attracts bears and to eliminate any access to those foods," Manley says. Once bears get needed calories from human-related food sources, they are very likely to stop seeking their natural foods, which may take more time and energy to locate. "A bear will eventually get into trouble because they return again and again to populated areas-whether campsites or homes." Camp food, grain, dog food, birdseed or hummingbird feeders, compost or open garbage receptacles can attract bears. When the bear is reported, it may be removed and relocated. FWP manages "nuisance" bears within guidelines that usually result in the removal of a bear with a "three strikes you’re out" policy. Bears that are relocated and return repeatedly are euthanized because at that point they are so bold around humans that they become a threat to public safety. "People are the key here," Manley said. " By being aware of the foods and situations that attract bears and taking steps to eliminate these attractants around our homes and when we’re camping, we protect ourselves and help keep wild bears in the wild," said Manley.
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