"The bears among us" was the general topic of the CIRG August gathering in the Riverfront Café. Our speaker was Greg Fuerst, Fish and Wildlife Technician with the NYS DEC – Region 8 Bureau in Bath. His audience was large and with good reason. Asked how many have seen bears in their neighborhood, more than two thirds of the 50-plus attendees raised their hands. Several even brought photos of their neighborhood bear visitors or of the tracks on their lawns and driveways. Clearly, THEY are among us.

As evidence of the changing times, Fuerst noted that a bear road-kill in 1978 was a big deal…not so any more. With females up to 165 pounds and males coming in at 300 pounds and even yearlings weighing 140 or more, the damage done to any vehicle that hits them can be extensive.

Fuerst noted that in the 1700’s and 1800’s people settling this region saw bears a threat to their crops and livestock. Heavily hunted in populated areas, the state’s bear population became concentrated in the mountainous areas – Alleghenies in southwestern NYS, the Catskills to the east but mostly in the Adirondacks. Protected by hunting seasons in recent years, the bear population is making a comeback all across the state --- even in the east-west (Thruway, Erie Canal, Route 20) corridor.

Bears mate in June or July and bear their young (the litter can be anywhere from one to six cubs) while hibernating in January or February. Cubs weighing 8 ounces at birth will grow to 110 pounds in their first year. Cubs stay with their mother for about 18 months. Tracking devices attached to female bears and her cubs while the mother is still in hibernation provide a record of a bear’s travels. He showed three maps on which the movements of three female bears were plotted. The plots showed how females, which bear cubs every other year, spend their cubs’ first year in the area in which they were born. As the time for her to mate again draws near, she roamed with her yearlings farther afield and leaves them there to fend for themselves, thus protecting them from the danger they might face from male bears intent on mating with her.

As they follow the tagged animals, it’s learned that female bears have a range of about 10 square miles while a male may wander over a range of 100 square miles or more.

Bears use their keen sense of smell, to detect food up to a mile away. Basically omnivores, they eat fruits, berries, nuts, honey – and bees along with the honey – as well as other insects. They are generally uncomfortable around humans, but their need for food – especially in the fall as hibernation time closes in -- will overcome that discomfort. That is exasperated when people willingly or inadvertently provide food.

Folks who note a bear frequenting their yard or neighborhood can bet they have found a food source to their liking in the area. Bird feeders, garbage cans, dog food the family pet has left in the dish …all are fair game for a hungry bear. And a hungry bear whose nose detects food will not be denied. They can rip their way into cars, trucks, even closed overhead garage doors as Fuerst showed in a photo of what a bear did to a two-door overhead door on a garage in which food was stored.

The best thing to do in bear encounters is to keep indoors, observe from a distance and, above all, do not feed them. A bear with its ears pinned back along the side of its head is an angry bear. Heed the warning and give that bear a wide berth.

Each attendee in the audience was given a copy of the DVD video “Living with New York Black Bears.” Fuerst said the hour-long CD produced by the DEC provides the secrets to safely sharing our landscape with bears and he urged that everyone share their CD with other family members and friends. The more people we can make aware of how to be a good ‘neigh-bear’ the safer our area can be…for bears and humans alike.

After Fuerst’s presentation, Erin McLoud, a docent with the Corning Museum of Glass (CMoG), spoke briefly about being a museum docent and invited those interested in being a docent to take part in the Museum’s docent training sessions that start in September. Her visit was timely, since the September 8 th CIRG meeting will not be in the Riverfront Café, but at CMoG for a Museum tour complete with hot glass show. That program will start as usual at 10 a.m.

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