Introduction
The sad truth is Ontario black bears
are today becoming recognized for their “nuisance value”. Excess
bears in growing numbers are invading northern communities, looking
for food. Some excess bears are relocated; most are eventually
indiscriminately destroyed and wasted. One strike and you’re out!
Mainly because in 1999 the Harris Government ignored the principles
of scientific wildlife management and sustainable use, caved in to
the threats of the “Bear Alliance” (Animal Rights Groups) and
cancelled a valuable Black Bear management tool, the “spring bear
hunt”.
Meanwhile, approximately one fifth of Ontario (cottage/bear country)
is challenged with the huge problem, what to do with the excess
bears? The inaction of the current “McGuinty Government” to
reinstate the spring hunt has added to this serious excess bear
problem.
FoF believes Ontario black bears should once again be recognized for
their “economic, trophy, and esthetic value” rather than considered
a nuisance to be shot and wasted (eliminated). The social, economic
and wildlife management benefits of our black bear natural resource
are worth millions of dollars annually. Our tax dollars should not
be wasted!
The responsibility to effectively deal with Ontario’s current huge
excess bear problem falls directly on the McGuinty Government’s
shoulders. Failure to act according to the scientific evidence
supporting the reinstatement of the spring hunt is perhaps a bigger
mistake than the initial cancellation.
“Our aim is to enhance and preserve the Cultures that surround the
fur trade, to educate and inform”. Therefore FoF is proud to present
the following proposal in the best interest of the Black Bears and
the people of Ontario.
This Government knows better and must be held accountable!
Please take the time to read this proposal and subsequently let your
MPP know exactly how you feel. Tell them to consider the
overwhelming “scientific evidence” accept their responsibility and
act accordingly. Exercise due diligence to deal effectively with
literally thousands of excess bears annually.
To help you contact your MPP please click on this link; MPP
Listing
Respectfully,
Eldon Hawton President Friends of Fur
Murray Monk Honorary Vice President – Advisor To The President
Wayne Huber Honorary Vice President – Advisor To The President
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Additional information
For a more detailed summary of the
events surrounding the spring bear hunt cancellation, with your
internet access open please click on this link, (Jim Lawrence COHA
article titled “How political pressure cancelled Ontario’s spring
black bear hunt”) posted on IWMC World Conservation Trust
Website: Click on link
http://www.iwmc.org/IWMC-Forum/JamesLawrence/040209-01.htm
to view article.
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Proposal to Equally Share Ontario’s Excess Bears
Prepared & presented in partnership by:
Murray Monk Trapper/Moose/Bear Hunter
&
Eldon Hawton Moose/Deer/Bear Hunter, former Trapper
“True caretakers of nature”
From September 2004
"Government “skeleton” reveals bears were “eliminated” from “former
range” (519, 416, 905 area codes); “As recently as 1961, bounties
were offered on black bears in Ontario…""
Our Perspective
You simply cannot stockpile wildlife, it is that simple. Make no
mistake about it, Ontario's bear "population density" at least in
some areas has clearly exceeded the carrying capacity of the land
and it will get worse, much worse!
It takes five to six years for female bears to have cubs, so this
accounts for why we have yet to see the real effects of "increased
population density" due to the cancellation of the spring bear hunt
in 1999. We are now just entering the period when the numbers of
females bearing cubs will begin to compound upward as the years
unfold.
Other than regulated hunting, road kills, rail kills, and those
killed to protect livestock and humans, bears in Ontario have
virtually no other natural predators. Bears sleep (hibernate)
throughout the barren winter months and seem immune to the many
diseases that control excess numbers of most other wildlife
populations.
Overcrowded hungry bears forced to invade urban areas in search of
something to eat are “symptoms of problems" due to the spring hunt
cancellation. Too many bears confined to a small portion of Ontario,
without an adequate year after year food supply and bears loosing
their fear of man.
Conservation/hunting/trapping groups such as COHA, NOSA, OFMF, OFAH
and others including municipal leaders, since 1999 have relentlessly
lobbied the Ontario Government; countless meetings, presentations,
petitions including “court actions” calling for the return of the
“spring bear hunt” have failed to persuade the current McGuinty
government to act accordingly.
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Manitoba Bear Study
Additional strong support for the
return of the “spring bear hunt” is apparent and obvious following
the most recent Manitoba Bear Study:
“Using reproductive data to model American black bear cub orphaning
in Manitoba due to spring harvest of females”
Hank Hristienko1,3, Douglas
Pastuck1,4, Ken J. Rebizant1,5,
Brian Knudsen1,6, and M. Laurene Connor2,7
Conclusions and management implications
“The spring hunting season is a valuable wildlife management tool.
It can be used to reduce or maintain black bear populations at or
below biological or cultural carrying capacity, thereby reducing or
maintaining problem bear incidents at tolerable levels in a
cost-effective manner. The spring hunt provides a hunting season
when there are few other hunting opportunities, distributes hunting
pressure over a greater period, gives hunters the advantage of short
and sparse vegetation (which increases detectability of cubs with
female bears), selects against nursing females because they are less
mobile and tend to avoid areas of disturbance, supports the rural
economy and the tourism industry, offers hunters the opportunity to
harvest an animal when its coat is prime and the meat less fat and
more palatable, reduces the number of bears before the problem bear
season rather than after it (in nuisance situations, females
accompanied with cubs are not exempt from management kills or from
persons defending their property or personal safety), and is
biologically sustainable.”
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Black Bear
reduced to “nuisance value”
We (the authors) of this proposal
believe that the once majestic Black Bear should not be reduced to
“nuisance value”. Therefore we agree with all the evidence
suggesting that the Ontario “spring bear hunt” must be reinstated.
We also agree with and support the principle of “sustainable use” of
our natural resources; which provides so many important social,
economic and wildlife management benefits, in terms of revenue
valued in the “millions” toward the Ontario economy, revenue/income
so vitally important to the livelihood of many northern Ontario
people.
Despite all the scientific evidence,
the intense lobbying, the legal actions and so on, it appears
“unlikely” that the “spring bear hunt” will ever be reinstated.
Rather then making the right
decisions, based on the scientific facts, the McGuinty Government is
most likely to continue to listen and cater to the “perceived”
emotional wishes of the “misguided voters”, within the 519, 416, 905
area codes.
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Bear
Alliance
Misinformed by the “Bear Alliance”,
(a group of like-minded “animal rights” supporters, including the
Animal Alliance of Canada, the Federation of Ontario Naturalists,
the World Wildlife Fund and of course the Schad Foundation). This
group named themselves the “Bear Alliance”, met and planned a
concerted effort to force the cancellation of the bear hunt. Later
the Federation of Ontario Naturalists withdrew from the Bear
Alliance when it realized the whole effort had little to do with
conservation.
Due to the successful lobbying
efforts of the “Bear Alliance” we (residents of “cottage/bear
country) are “forced” to deal with the rapidly increasing
“population density” and the subsequent on going problem of “excess
black bears”, currently inhabiting and “reproducing” mainly the
central portion of Ontario.
The below “Bear Wise - Ontario
Bear Density Map” shows the current distribution of Ontario bears;
“The central portion of this vast area, where the highest density of
black bears is found, is also Ontario's "cottage country”. So, are
people sharing the great outdoors with the bears? Or are the bears
sharing their home with people.”
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Plenty of room
for Bears & Humans… MNR
To quote the MNR; “According to
leading wildlife specialists with the Ontario Ministry of Natural
Resources, there's plenty of room for all of us. With a little
effort on the part of humans, both species can `live and let live,"
says Mike Hall, District Biologist with MNR in Sudbury.
This map suggests that clearly the
largest percentage of Ontario bears “40-60 bears/100km2”, (vast
majority) are concentrated into approx one fifth of the province
sharing their home with “people” from that relatively small area,
the remainder of the province shares the balance, density ranging
from “20-40 to <20 bears/100km2” and most of southwestern Ontario
has “0 bears/100km2”.
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Unfair distribution of
bears
The MNR “density map” suggests that
the distribution of bears is clearly unfair in terms of, numbers of
“bears sharing their home with people”. This begs the question, why
should "cottage country” be the main area to house the majority of
Ontario’s Bears?
We believe the “population density”
of bears should be equally shared with other people living in
Ontario and according to the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources,
“there's plenty of room for all of us”. The McGuinty Government
should then seriously consider the following plan to assist the
current “natural migration” of bears moving south, “returning” to
their historical “former range”. Thus allowing more Ontarians to
“equally share Ontario’s excess bears”.
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The Plan:
Background:
At one time in history bears inhabited most of North America
including those areas covered by 519, 416, 905 area codes. The “MNR-
Bear Wise Density Map” shows that few, if any bears inhabit this
area of Ontario today.
Why is this and how did it happen?
Ironically the people from that area used indiscriminate trapping,
shooting, and poisoning and had the black bears eliminated from that
area.
Yet before we start “blamming” the
hunter/trapper, according to the history books, it seems they
(hunters/trappers) were encouraged, even paid by the Government, for
“as recently as 1961, bounties were offered on black bears in
Ontario”.
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Government skeleton revealed
The supporting evidence can be found
within the pages of MNR’s own history book, coproduced by OMNR & OTA
in the late 80’s, released in 1987, titled: “WILD FURBEARER
MANAGEMENT AND CONSERVATION IN NORTH AMERICA • SECTION IV: SPECIES
BIOLOGY,MANAGEMENT, AND CONSERVATION page #443” Chapter 35, BLACK
BEAR by; GEORGE B. KOLENOSKY, STEWART M. STRATHEARN
“DISTRIBUTION”
“At one time black bears ranged throughout most of the North
American continent with the exception of the treeless barrens of
northern Canada and the desert regions of the southwestern United
States (Seton 1929). At present in Canada the species occupies about
85% of its historical range. It has been “eliminated” from the more
southerly regions of all the provinces and does not occur on Prince
Edward Island. It does not occur in the tundra regions of the North,
although transients occasionally have been sighted on the barren
lands.”
The book goes on to say:
“MANAGEMENT”
“Since the advent of European settlement in North America,
interactions between humans and bears have been dominated by
conflict, which has resulted in systematic attempts to eliminate
bears and their habitat. In many instances the mere presence of
bears has been regarded as a problem to be dealt with through
indiscriminate trapping, shooting, and poisoning. This inevitably
resulted in the “extirpation” of the species from large parts of its
“former range”, particularly the more populated regions of the
United States and southern Canada. Recognition of the economic,
trophy, and esthetic value of black bears has been slow, especially
in areas with sizable bear populations. As recently as 1961,
bounties were offered on black bears in Ontario, which has a large
population of bears.”
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Bear migration to former
range
Recently due to the overcrowded
“carrying capacity” of “bear/cottage country”, bears are forced to
return to their “former range”. Growing evidence that this is indeed
“happening” is reported in recent news stories. The following are a
couple of examples.
What's that animal outside? A
bear? Oh deer! This article appeared in The Toronto Sun on August10,
2004.
Author: Connie Woodcock
Source: Toronto Sun
“Bears seem to be everywhere in
Ontario this summer -- as northern resident Shirley Brennan noted in
this space yesterday. There have been bears in Barrie; bears near
London; bears near Peterborough and one, amazingly, in Flamborough.
That one somehow crossed the 401, a ministry spokesman said.”
This article appeared in The
Kitchener-Waterloo Record on July 31, 2004
Nuisance bears are moving south
Author: Bill Thompson
Source: Kitchener-Waterloo Record
“If you think black bears were a
nuisance before, you ain't seen nothing yet.
In fact, since my June 26 column on
the increase in nuisance bear calls in Ontario, things have gotten
worse. And I'm not just talking about the traditional black bear
haunts of Northern Ontario.
Case in point: on July 3 and 5, the
Guelph Mercury and The Record ran stories about black bear sightings
in the Guelph, Hamilton and Dundas areas. And a bear was shot at the
edge of Hamilton in July.
That's not all. The Ministry of
Natural Resources and the Ontario Provincial Police have reported
bear sightings in Erin, Limestone, Flamborough, Georgetown and even
south of London. And I have heard reports of bear sightings in
Kitchener and Waterloo.
While most people think that
sightings in such non-traditional bear territory are nothing short
of amazing, they better get used to it. It's going to get worse
because, in short, as the bear population increases, more bears are
moving south for food.
Before 1999, bear-hunting operators
baited areas in the spring and studies undertaken by Sudbury's
Laurentian University showed what hunters had been saying for years
-- that the vast majority of bears that came to these areas were
males.
When the hunts were cancelled, so was
the baiting. With hundreds of thousands of pounds of food taken out
of the food chain, the big males enforced the pecking order and
pushed juvenile males, females and cubs out of the top feeding
areas. They went south to dumps and other areas with food.”
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Landfill Bear
Feeding-Stations
Currently many of the excess bears in
“bear/cottage country” depend on “landfill sites” (feeding stations)
for food. The following pictures show bears feeding in landfill
sites located near Biscotasing and Westree Ontario just north of
Sudbury. This day the Biscotasing landfill had seventeen (17) bears
and the Westree site was feeding six (6).
Biscotasing landfill site
|
Westree Landfill site |
Details of Plan:
Rather than fence off these “feeding
stations” as suggested in MNR “Bear Wise” program, thus forcing
bears to look elsewhere for something to eat (including urban
areas). We suggest that these northern landfill sites would provide
an excellent opportunity (location) to catch bears for the
“relocation program.”
Bears caught from these sites could then be transported (relocated)
into landfill sites (feeding stations) located in the areas
currently with the least “bear population density”, southern Ontario
(519, 416, 905, area codes).
We suggest that the “wasted food”
from restaurants, hospitals, nursing homes and households dumped (by
the many tons) in landfill sites from this vast urban population,
will provide an adequate on-going food supply for the relocated
bears. Therefore, “relocated bears” would have very little reason to
leave these “feeding stations” and would most likely be content to
live around these “landfill sites” from early spring right through
to hibernation.
Residents in close proximity to these
landfill sites (bear feeding stations) should have little to fear;
simply do as we are told here in “cottage/bear country” and adhere
to the four corner stones of the McGuinty Government’s “Bear Wise”
program, quote, “The Bear Wise program is based on four cornerstones
- reporting, response, prevention, and education and awareness”.
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Needed Government Action
We suggest that the McGuinty
Government should immediately add/implementing this component to
their existing comprehensive “Bear Wise” program.
Use the $900,000 currently in the
budget for such things as “landfill fencing”, toward developing and
implementing a cost effective “bear relocation element” as part of
MNR’s existing bear wise initiative dealing with the problem of
excess “bear/cottage country” bears.
Due to the problems these excess
bears have caused and the increase in nuisance bear calls/situations
over the past five years. We now have a large number of
groups/individuals “Bear Relocation Experts” who can assist with
this “bear relocation element” and subsequently will ensure the cost
effectiveness of this important, urgent and badly needed project.
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Needed Public Support
In spite of all the ever increasing
“excess bear” problems people in “cottage/bear country” are
currently forced to tolerate, combined with the on-going struggle
(over the past five years) to “share habitat” with bears.
In all the suggestions, proposals,
presentations and court actions, (“contrary to the legacy” of people
from 519, 416, 905 area codes), to our knowledge never was there
ever any mention that the “excess bear problems” should be dealt
with by “elimination, through indiscriminate trapping, shooting, and
poisoning”, no “bounty” was ever suggested nor contemplated.
Rather, advocates are simply asking
that their traditional, cost-effective, economically-beneficial,
“wildlife management tool” the “spring bear hunt” be returned to the
benefit of everyone. Restoring long overdue “recognition of the
economic, trophy, and esthetic value of black bears”.
We know this plan will make a “lot of
sense” to a lot of people including the general public, northern
municipalities and conservation minded groups and individuals.
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Expect Bear Alliance to
support (“bear relocation element”)
We also anticipate that “Animal
Rights Groups” including the Animal Alliance of Canada, the
Federation of Ontario Naturalists, the World Wildlife Fund and, of
course the Schad Foundation the “group” known as “the Bear Alliance”
should welcome this addition (“bear relocation element”) to their
favored “BearWise” program and will know doubt champion the idea of
getting some of their beloved bears much closer to home.
For example Barry Kent MacKay (animal
rights activist) was recently quoted in this North Bay Nugget news
story published July 8th 2004. The Nugget reports that; “Last month,
the Ontario government announced it would spend $900,000 on the Bear
Wise program to support community based bear prevention and public
education campaigns. Such as buying bear-resistant garbage
containers and landfill fencing.
Such programs have been extremely effective in helping residents
deal with bear problems, said Barry Kent MacKay, director of the
Animal Alliance of Canada in Toronto.”
Relocation element good second
choice
As an “alternative” to the McGuiny
Government doing the right thing and reinstating the “spring bear
hunt”. Many people/groups will know doubt see this proposal as an
excellent “second choice” and will want to express their support to
have this new “relocation element” added to the MNR “Bear Wise”
plan.
Help us convince the McGuinty Government to do the right thing to
properly address this huge problem. Your opinion will only count if
you take the time to tell our elected MPP’s exactly what you think.
Please help support our “Proposal
To Equally Share Ontario’s Excess Bears”.
MPP quick contact list
Please use this link, find your MPP,
Minister Ramsey, Dalton McGuinty and any other MPP you wish, send a
letter, fax, or email expressing your support. Link to MPP’s here.
http://olaap.ontla.on.ca/mpp/contact.jsp
Current Government (OMNR) Perspective:
Ontario’s Current Bear Situation Per MNR Bear Wise website:
Website:
http://bears.mnr.gov.on.ca
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March 30, 2004
McGUINTY
GOVERNMENT LAUNCHES BEAR WISE PROGRAM
TORONTO — The McGuinty government has
established a toll-free hotline as part of a new Bear Wise strategy
to help manage nuisance black bears and make communities safer,
Natural Resources Minister David Ramsay announced today, delivering
on a promise he made in December.
"People can call toll free
1-866-514-BEAR (2327) 24 hours a day, seven days a week to report
nuisance bear problems," said Ramsay. "This is real positive change
that will go a long way toward easing the minds of people living in
bear country and make our communities safer."
The new phone line will handle
nuisance bear situations. In emergencies, the public should call 911
or police for assistance.
"The best defense against nuisance
bears is education and prevention," said Ramsay. "Simple actions
such as bear-proofing your garbage, not leaving pet food outside and
cleaning outdoor grills can make a big difference in minimizing
nuisance bear activities."
The Bear Wise strategy is based on
four cornerstones - reporting, response, prevention, and education
and awareness - as the best way to reduce nuisance bear activity.
Ministry staff have also met with
more than 200 communities across Ontario and the Ontario Association
of Chiefs of Police to discuss ways of working together to prevent
nuisance bear problems.
"We all have a role to play in reducing human-bear conflicts," said
Ramsay. "By increasing awareness of how to avoid unintentionally
feeding bears, we will drastically reduce nuisance bear activity
which will improve the quality of life of everyone living in bear
country."
Fact Sheet: Bear Management Strategy
Website:
http://bears.mnr.gov.on.ca
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April 26, 2004
ONTARIO GOVERNMENT SIGNS PROTOCOL WITH POLICE ABOUT BEARS
Agreement Supported by the Ontario
Association of Chiefs of Police
SAULT STE. MARIE — The Ontario
government is making communities in bear country safer and stronger
through a new protocol with the Ontario Provincial Police about
responding to bear problems, Natural Resources Minister David Ramsay
announced today.
"I'm very pleased we've reached this
agreement clarifying that police will respond to bear problems that
pose an immediate public safety threat," said Ramsay. "This will
help the public know who to call when dealing with bear problems,
and should help ease the minds of people living in bear country."
The protocol signed today clarifies
roles and responsibilities around responding to human-bear problems.
Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) will respond to emergency bear calls
and will call the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) for assistance
if necessary. MNR will respond to non-emergency bear calls. The
Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police (OACP), which represents
municipal police agencies and the OPP, supports the protocol and
will encourage member forces to use it as a template to reach
agreements with municipal forces.
"This is an important community
safety issue for many of the communities we serve, particularly in
Northern Ontario," said OACP President Chief Ean Algar. "We are
pleased that by working with the Ontario government, we have been
able to put in place a process that will ensure the safety of
Ontarians when dealing with a nuisance bear."
"The new protocol will help the OPP
improve upon the safety of people who are placed in danger by
bears," said OPP Deputy Commissioner Maurice Pilon. "Every bear
incident is different and by providing a coordinated approach to
assessing each situation and potential response, we can also act in
the best interests of our human and bear population."
Today's announcement is the next step
in the province's Bear Wise program. The key elements of Bear Wise
are reporting, response, prevention, and education and awareness.
People can call 1-866-514-BEAR (2327) toll-free 24 hours a day,
seven days a week during the bear season with non-emergency bear
problems.
"By strengthening the communities in
which we live, we are providing people with a quality of life that
is second to none," said Ramsay.
Fact sheet: Province Signs Protocol
with Police on Response to Human-Bear Conflicts
Website:
http://bears.mnr.gov.on.ca
IN AN IMMEDIATE EMERGENCY: contact your local police force or dial
911
TO REPORT BEAR PROBLEMS: contact the Bear Reporting Line at
1-866-514-BEAR (2327) (TTY) 705 945-7641
FOR INFORMATION ABOUT THE BEAR
MANAGEMENT PROGRAM: contact your local MNR office
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June 14, 2004
NEW BEAR
WISE PROGRAM WILL MAKE COMMUNITIES SAFER
$900,000 for community-based bear
programs
NORTH BAY — A new Bear Wise funding program to support
community-based bear prevention, awareness and public education
programs will increase public safety in bear country, Natural
Resources Minister David Ramsay announced today.
"We will work with communities to
identify trouble spots for conflicts between humans and bears and
implement prevention measures to reduce those conflicts," said
Ramsay. "We are providing $900,000 to support initiatives that will
help make communities in bear country safer, such as bear-resistant
garbage containers or landfill fencing."
Communities that undergo an approved
bear hazard assessment and develop an action plan are eligible to
receive funds through the Bear Wise program. The bear hazard
assessment involves the community and the local Ministry of Natural
Resources office working together to identify areas at high risk for
human-bear conflicts and then developing a plan to prevent problems.
Interested communities must apply by July 16, 2004, for funding for
this year.
"I'm very pleased the ministry is
providing funding for community-based prevention efforts," said
North Bay Mayor Victor Fedeli, as he accepted a funding application
from the minister. "This will help communities like ours manage, or
better yet, prevent bear problems, and that's good for all of us
living here."
The minister also announced that the
North Bay Police Service is about to become the second force to sign
an agreement with the ministry under the Bear Wise program. North
Bay police will respond to emergency bear calls and will call the
Ministry of Natural Resources for assistance if necessary. The
ministry will respond to non-emergency bear calls.
The Bear Wise program is based on
four cornerstones - reporting, response, prevention, and education
and awareness.
People who have bear problems or want
more information on bears, can call the Bear Wise phone line
1-866-514-2327 toll-free, 24 hours a day, seven days a week during
bear season. They can also visit the Bear Wise website at
bears.mnr.gov.on.ca for education and awareness information.
For emergency bear situations, the public is asked to call 911 or
local police.
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“Bear
Wise - Bear Biology”
Up close and personal with Ontario's black bears.
Bear biologists and wildlife experts share some fascinating facts.
“Sharing the great outdoors”
We humans share the province of Ontario with more than 75,000
black bears. Most live in the geographic expanse stretching from
Ottawa in the southeast through to Kenora in the northwest. The
central portion of this vast area, where the highest density of
black bears is found, is also Ontario's "cottage country." So, are
people sharing the great outdoors with the bears? Or are the bears
sharing their home with people. According to leading wildlife
specialists with the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, there's
plenty of room for all of us. "With a little effort on the part of
humans, both species can `live and let live,'" says Mike Hall,
District Biologist with MNR in Sudbury.
Understanding black bears starts with
studying their life cycles, food sources and reproduction patterns,
and determining the environmental factors that motivate them to roam
- sometimes hundreds of kilometers - in search for food. No one
works harder to find these answers than the MNR specialists who get
up close and personal with these fascinating and intelligent
animals.
Dr. Martyn Obbard is a research
scientist with the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, and is
recognized as an expert on black bears. Dr. Obbard and his fellow
biologists have amassed a wealth of information about black bears.
Their combined knowledge is being used to clear up misconceptions
and promote collaboration between residents and communities. As
leading bear experts, they hope that greater awareness will lead to
increased respect for bears and their value in our ecosystem, and
motivate us to take the steps necessary to reduce human-bear
conflicts. "Treating wildlife with respect and doing our part to
reduce conflicts is all part of being ecologically responsible,"
says Dr. Obbard.
“A bit of bear biology”
Many people don't realize just how
big black bears are. A mature adult male can measure up to 190 cm (6
ft) in length, and weigh anywhere from 120 to 300 kg (250 to 650
lbs). Females can weigh up to 180 kg (400 lbs).
While we tend to think of bears as
herbivores, eating berries, nuts, roots, shoots and leaves, black
bears are actually omnivores that will eat just about anything,
including carrion and smaller animals. Black bears are
opportunistic, which means they will do what they have to and go
where they must, to find food. In what biologists call "a good food
year," when generous rainfall and cool weather lead to lush berry
crops, bears live on what nature provides. In early spring, on
emerging from hibernation, they eat willow catkins, grasses,
dandelions and aspen leaves. When they can, they augment this diet
with protein sources such as fish, winter-killed animals and
sometimes newborn fawns or moose calves. In summer, they eat
raspberries, blueberries, chokecherries and various currants and
tree berries as they become available, looking to ant colonies and
bee and wasp nests for sources of protein. In fall, they favour
hazelnuts, mountain ash berries, acorns and beechnuts. Bears will
feed for 20 hours a day, consuming enormous quantities of food,
driven by a biological imperative to put on as much weight as
possible in preparation for the coming winter hibernation.
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Bear Wise
- Farmer's role in keeping bears at bay
Can farmers and bears coexist in peace?
Yes - with planning and effort.
Farmland and bear country: frequently one and the same.
Ontario's Ministry of Agriculture and
Food census shows that in the year 2000 there were almost 60,000
working farms in Ontario, with some 85,000 Ontario residents earning
their living by farming. To say that farming is a vital contributor
to Ontario's economy would be a huge understatement. Ontario farms
supply a vast market for beef and dairy products, hogs, chickens,
fruits, vegetables and grains. A farmer's life, while challenging at
the best of times, can be made especially difficult when the farm is
situated in "bear country." Thousands of Ontario farms are located
in regions of central, northern and northwestern Ontario where the
forests support populations of black bears. These forests and wooded
areas often border, and sometimes surround, farmland. The farms are
part of bear country, and the bears are part of farm country. This
is why farmer-bear conflicts can frequently occur.
Fattening up: a bear's prime
directive
Bears' natural life cycle is to start
looking for food as soon as they emerge from hibernation in the
spring and eat as much as possible during summer and into early
fall. Bears will forage and eat for 20 hours a day, consuming
enormous quantities of food, some managing to double their body
weight by the end of the season. This is especially important for
females, who need that stored reserve of energy to produce and feed
cubs throughout a long winter in the den.
In what bear biologists call "a good
food year," black bears live on the foods they find naturally in
their forest environment - young green shoots and aspen leaves in
the spring, plentiful berry crops in summer and a variety of nuts in
the fall. But in years of drought, when berry crops dry up, or when
a late spring frost has killed the fledgling berry flowers, the
bears have to roam farther for food, using their highly developed
sense of smell as a sort of homing device. The aroma of corn or
ripening grain in a farmer's field, fallen fruit in an orchard or
vegetables in a garden - or the scent of livestock, animal food or
even a bird feeder, can bring them to the property looking for a
meal. Beehives are a particular attraction, and being omnivores,
bears have been known to take newborn calves. And once they get a
taste of what's available on a farm, they will remember, and return.
For the farmer, this can mean the
loss of expensive livestock, grain crops, produce and valuable feed.
For the bear, it can mean the loss of life. Because in defense of
property and income, the farmer may see no alternative but to shoot
the offending bear.
Damage control: preventing
problems before they start
The Ontario Government, through the
Ministry of Natural Resources, has mounted a program called Bear
Wise, intended to provide all Ontario residents, including farmers,
with information about black bears and the steps we can all take to
reduce the number of human-bear encounters. Some of the steps are
simple: Picking ripe fruit off trees and vegetables from the ground,
for example, not leaving pet food or livestock supplements outdoors
and waiting until winter to put up bird feeders. But for farmers in
particular, some steps involve more planning and effort.
"There are things farmers can do to
protect their property," says Bill Darby, who works for Ontario's
Ministry of Natural Resources, and is a farmer himself. As District
Manager in Fort Frances and a former biologist, Darby farms and
works in a part of the province where he says, "Interface between
bears and farmers is at or near the maximum you would see anywhere."
One of the steps Darby suggests is
that if at all possible, grain or cornfields should be planted as
far away from the edge of the forest as possible. "Bears like to
follow the forest edge," he says. "So any crop that's adjacent to
the forest is vulnerable, because the bears will venture out,
knowing there's a forest right behind them to retreat to." Leaving a
swath of open land or pasture between the crop and the forest edge
will deter bears foraging because bears are more likely to stay in
the cover of the woods and follow the edge looking for something
closer.
If farmers don't have that
flexibility, Darby's other suggestion is electric fencing. It has
been shown that electric fencing placed between the crop and the
adjacent woods can be effective at deterring bears, especially if a
scent lure is placed at intervals on the wire. Electric fencing is
also wise protection for beehives and orchards. Other MNR biologists
concur, stating that the investment in electric fencing is
definitely worthwhile when measured against the longer-term costs of
losing calves, crops or produce to a foraging bear. Farmers who
would like more information on electric fencing are encouraged to
contact their local MNR office, where details are available on
fencing type, lengths and installation procedures.
Darby, and other senior MNR biologists agree that farmer-bear
coexistence is all about preventing damage well before it occurs.
It's also about being aware of what is and isn't a "bear problem."
For example, a bear sauntering through the back of a farmer's
property isn't a problem. It's only when that bear is attracted by
something on the farm it thinks it can eat, and is rewarded with a
full belly, that it becomes a problem. Through the steps the
ministry suggests in its Bear Wise information program, perhaps more
bears can be kept away…and kept alive.
Farmers or other residents who want
more information or need help managing a bear conflict can call
1-866-514-BEAR, visit a special website,
http://bears.mnr.gov.on.ca
, or contact their local MNR district office.
"We have the choice," says Darby. "As
farmers, we can view bears as `varmints' or as a precious tourism
resource. Our behaviour determines what value we place on bears. It
seems wiser, for farmers, and for society in general, to achieve the
most out of all of our natural resources. With a little planning and
effort, we can improve the chances that bears and humans can
coexist."
Bears' entire lives are spent in a repeated cycle: Eat … fatten
up…hibernate…emerge. Both sexes know they need to gain as much
weight as possible during the period from mid-April to late fall.
But for the female, weight gain is especially important, or she
won't reproduce. The female may mate successfully, but due to some
amazing evolutionary foresight, her fertilized eggs won't implant to
form cubs until her body reaches a certain weight - at least 70 kg.
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“Bear Wise -
Ontario Bear Density Map”
The above “Bear Wise - Ontario Bear
Density Map” shows the current distribution of Ontario bears; “The
central portion of this vast area, where the highest density of
black bears is found, is also Ontario's "cottage country. So, are
people sharing the great outdoors with the bears? Or are the bears
sharing their home with people.”
Authors NOTE: “A portion of the
519 area code density ranges from 20-40 bears/100 km2 to 0 bears,
while the 416, 905 area codes show 0 bears.
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Newss and information
The
Black Bear Re-Introduction Campaign is Gathering Steam!
- MNR
Density Map shows that the population of black bears is unfairly
distributed