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Backyard bears unwelcome
BY JAMES JACENICH • STAFF WRITER
 | | A black bear visited a bird feeder at the home of Tess and Ernie Jordan of Hightown recently. It had no trouble reaching the bird feeder suspended six feet above the ground. (Photo courtesy Ernie Jordan) |
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MONTEREY - "The bears are hungry," says Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries district wildlife biologist Al Bourgeois.
It hasn't been a good year for blackberries, blueberries, sassafras and other foods bears are accustomed to, he says. The problem isn't limited to Virginia; hungry bear encounters have been reported in West Virginia and Pennsylvania, too.
Highland County Sheriff Herb Lightner says, "This year we have had complaints daily about bears on porches, breaking into houses, in vehicles, tearing down bird feeders. I've seen right many bears."
Ernie Jordan of Hightown recently saw a bear come into his yard. It made several trips over a couple of weeks. Jordan repaired his bird feeder pole the first time it was damaged. The second time the bear bent the pole holding the feeder at a 90-degree angle to get to the seed. The bear also got to a bird feeder suspended six feet off the ground and ate the birdseed like it was candy that fell out of a pinata.
Jordan put away the birdseed and hid his garbage. After a few days he thought the bear was gone, so the bird enthusiast put the birdseed out again. A bear came back this week in the middle of the night to get it. Ernie and his wife, Tess, banged on kitchen pots to make the bear go away. It left after three hours when it was finished eating.
But the simplest prescription to keep bears away from one's home or person is not to feed them.
Lightner offers some practical advice on keeping bears away. "Don't feed the bear. Put bird feeders higher than a bear can reach (not on a tree - bears can climb), grills, not too much you can do about the grease, bee hives, a lot of people use electric fence around bee hives. That would keep them at a distance," he says.
But if a bear won't go away after taking these normal precautions, then call the sheriff's office; dispatchers will notify DGIF, or call DGIF directly at (804) 367- 1258.
Bears are not coming to hurt people, Bourgeois says. They are just looking for food. Bourgeois also suggests residents to eliminate the food sources attracting bears and wait at least five days before calling authorities. Chances are they will not return once their source of easy food is gone, he says.
"Don't encourage them, don't feed them," says Lightner. "They come by and check those places every day. If nothing is found they will check around; they will enter trucks, tear up feed bags," says Lightner.
But there are other ways to get rid of a bear.
"You can make a noise. It will scare the bear off," says Lightner. There are also compressed gas devices on the market that emit a loud noise when discharged.
"If you clap your hands, a bear will run off unless it is a mama bear; she won't leave," says Lightner.
Pay attention if you come across a bear cub because chances are good the mother is nearby. Mother bears are more aggressive when it comes to protecting their young.
"The game commission has tried to trap them, but they would be overwhelmed (by the demand). They don't have the resources to trap them," says Lightner.
Besides, Virginia wants a healthy bear population, according to DGIF. The population has grown since the 1970s, when there were only 1,000 black bears in Virginia; today where there are nearly 10,000. They are part of Virginia's natural heritage and popular among hunters. DGIF is monitoring the bear population to make sure it doesn't exceed what the commonwealth can safely handle. Last year, 1,000 bears were killed to keep the population in check. But the population is still growing, officials say.
For the most part, bears keep their distance from humans. Black bears have no known predator other than humans. In the wild, away from people, bears are free to roam and forage as they wish. It's when they run into humans and human habitations that the problem begins.
The bear problem should ease as fall comes, says Lorraine Thomas, recreation program manager, Warm Springs ranger district.
For one thing, the acorn crop is expected to come in by the end of August or early October, giving bears a preferred source of nourishment. Hunters are also running their dogs, forcing bears to retreat further from humans.
People are going further into the wilderness, though, increasing the pressure on bear populations.
The Warm Springs Ranger District closed down a remote campground at Lake Moomaw recently because of a problem with a bear foraging around campsites. To get to the campground, one had to hike in or boat in. Thomas says the area will remain closed until the acorn harvest diverts bears to better forage. The rest of the campgrounds at Lake Moomaw remain open, but campers are advised to be cautious with food in their campground.
Campers should keep no food or trash in their tents, and lock food and trash in their cars at night, says Thomas. "If camping remotely, bring a length of rope and hang food and trash 10 feet in above the ground on a tree branch, four feet from the trunk of the tree.
Even cough drops can be a problem. Bears have a keen sense of smell. It's best to keep even small food items out of one's tent, says Thomas.
If visitors have a problem with a bear in the national forest, they should call the ranger station at (540) 839-2521, says Thomas.
Homeowners should also keep food out of the reach of hungry bears, says Thomas. Clean up the bird feeders, maybe put them away until the acorns come in. Dog food and cat food should not be left out for bears to eat, either. "The key is not to have any food available," says Thomas.
Bourgeois says bears are not normally a danger to people and bear attacks are extremely rare, especially in the Southeast.
"When a bear gets used to people and noise, that's when they get dangerous, habituated to human activity," says Thomas.
Familiar interaction between bear and human can lead to tragedy.
April 13, a six-year-old girl was killed by a black bear in the Cherokee National Forest in Tennessee. Two others, including the girl's mother, were injured. The bear was captured and euthanized after it was confirmed through DNA analysis that the bear had human DNA under its claws. But that was only the second report of a bear attack in the Southeast, ever. Authorities said the bear was probably used to being around people. It is a warning local residents need to take seriously.
While feeding bears is illegal in Virginia due to the danger it creates with habituation, even normally law-abiding citizens contribute to the problem by leaving food intended for other animals where bears can get to it.
"Food at home may make bears more dangerous everywhere," says Thomas. "A normal bear in the woods will have a healthy fear of people. Even if people are hiking with food in their packs, the bear will leave them alone. You don't want to teach bears to associate food with people."
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