OUTDOOR Forum at canaaninstitute.org

[Mike_L]

June 06 2008

Hello all. We live on the very edge of Shindagin Hollow State Forest (last house on Shindagin Hollow Rd) in Brooktondale. We discovered this morning that in the night we must have been visited by a capable bear, who went into an outdoor cabinet, extracted and overturned a large garbage can, and took away an almost full 40 lb bag of sunflower seed--without leaving a trail of spilled seed. The bear also visited our neighbors across the road, mauled their feeders, took suet, and a 20 lb bag of seed.

Somewhere nearby there is a very full and happy bear (or two?) today....

Cheers,
Melissa
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Michael Ludgate - forum administrator
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[Mike_L]

There were multiple similar incidents on Beam Hill Rd near Hammond Hill Forest earlier this year mostly all involving bird food and bird feeders. NYS DEC recommends not feeding the birds during summer months in areas where there are bears ...

http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/7246.html

http://www.dec.ny.gov/pubs/40037.html

http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/6960.html

-m
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Michael Ludgate - forum administrator
The Canaan Institute http://www.canaaninstitute.org/

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[Mike_L]

Attached is a picture of the [Shindagin] bear, back for dinner, 6 PM yesterday (June 08) -- photo from Mark Schrader


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[Mike_L]

[Mike_L]

Mike,

Attached http://canaaninstitute.org/docs/DEC_Black_Bears.pdf is a DEC news release with tips to help avoid bear problems. More information on bears can be found on the DEC's website, including at the following address which has a page on avoiding problems in the back country, http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/7230.html.

An important point regarding a chance encounter with a bear, whether in your back yard or out on a trail, is "do not run." Speak in a loud voice and back away slowly. If there's more then one person, huddle and move as a group, to appear as one larger animal to the extent possible. People should never assume they could out run a bear, you won't. Bears are also good climbers, so climbing a tree would offer little help. Fortunately, nearly always, a bear is going to be as anxious to move away from you as you may be from it.


David Riehlman
Sr. Wildlife Biologist
1285 Fisher Ave
Cortland, NY 13045
607-753-3095 ext. 240
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Michael Ludgate - forum administrator
The Canaan Institute http://www.canaaninstitute.org/

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[Mike_L]

Grove School Rd visit June 9th

My wife just called to say when she got home this afternoon, the trash cans were turned over and emptied and all the bird feeders were ripped down (except for the thistle feeder) Apparently the culprit climbed up onto our deck over the railing to get at the hummingbird feeder as well. Luckily, he/she decided not to take a swim in the pool which I filled yesterday for the kids. This would be the first bear visit I KNOWof in the Grove School Rd/Bald Hill Rd area, about 1 mile from Brooktondale, we've certainly not been visited before and we've been keeping our feeders full for the last 4 years.. This full and happy bear also left a nice bird-seed filled parting gift for us in the front yard, evidence of past bird feeder raids.
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Michael Ludgate - forum administrator
The Canaan Institute http://www.canaaninstitute.org/

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[Mike_L]

http://www.theithacajournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080611/NEWS01/806110325/-1/&source=nletter-news
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Michael Ludgate - forum administrator
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[Mike_L]

From Dave Henderson:

[Mike_L]

Boundaries expanded for NY bear hunting
By Mary Esch • The Associated Press • September 19, 2008
http://www.theithacajournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080919/NEWS01/80919001

ALBANY — In response to a growing population of bears, the state Department of Environmental Conservation has expanded hunting zones to include 13 new areas in central and western New York this fall.

State DEC Commissioner Pete Grannis says the hunting boundaries were expanded because the black bear population has grown in number and range in recent years, and hunting is an important tool in managing bear population growth. The current bear population in New York state is estimated at around 7,000, with about 2,000 of those in the southern half of the state and the rest in the Adirondacks, said Gordon Batcheller, a DEC wildlife biologist.

“When I started my career in western New York in 1981, black bears weren’t a significant presence,” Batcheller said. “Now my colleagues in that area say dealing with black bears is a regular occurrence.”

The DEC region that includes the six westernmost counties of the state reported 161 bear complaints last year, Batcheller said. Most involved bears raiding birdfeeders or garbage cans around homes, or cornfields or beehives on farms, he said.

Reports of bear problems in the state are down now, Batcheller said, because this summer’s weather has produced a bumper crop of nuts and berries and bears are less inclined to seek food in residential areas.

Attacks on humans by bears are almost unheard-of in New York state, Batcheller said, although there have been a number of them documented in other parts of the country. Most complaints involve bears looking for food.

“As we trace problems between people and bears, it invariably leads back to bears getting into food,” Batcheller said. “If they find food, they’ll keep coming back until it’s gone. Then they learn that food is associated with human habitation, and they get into the habit of looking for it there.”

In May, a 6-foot black bear that was roaming around the Syracuse suburb of Geddes was euthanized because it developed a habit of hanging around residential areas. In 2007, it had been captured and relocated after causing damage in the Seneca County village of Waterloo.

In August 2006, officers from the DEC shot and killed a 350-pound male black bear that had become aggressive toward campers in the High Peaks region of the Adirondacks. The bear was accustomed to raiding the food supplies of backpackers in the heavily used Flowed Lands camping area.

In response to problems with bears habitually stealing hikers’ food, the DEC has since made it mandatory for High Peaks campers to carry food and garbage in bear-proof canisters or face fines.

To educate people about preventing bear problems, the DEC recently produced a DVD that has been distributed to libraries and schools throughout the state, Batcheller said.

“Our concern is really trying to emphasize that in black bear range, which is expanding to include more and more of New York state, food attracts bears,” Batcheller said. “In some cases, people may be feeding bears and not even realize it, if they have birdfeeders or poorly kept compost bins.”

Bowhunting season for bears in the Southern Zone of New York begins on Oct. 18 and regular bear season begins Nov. 22. In the Catskills, regular bear season starts Nov. 15.

The new regulations expand bear hunting to 13 additional Wildlife Management Units, which include parts of Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, Erie, Wyoming, Genesee, Monroe, Livingston, Wayne, Ontario, Seneca, Yates, Steuben, Schuyler, Tompkins, Tioga, Cortland, Broome, Chenango, Madison, Onondaga, Oneida, and Otsego counties.

In 2007, hunters killed 1,117 bears in New York, up from 796 in 2006.
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Michael Ludgate - forum administrator
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[Mike_L]

"Natural Resources biologist Bradley Kennedy takes paw measurements from a male black bear with an estimated weight of 185 pounds Monday evening at the Mount Nebo Work Center of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources near Oakland. The bear was hunted by 14-year-old Jesse Lapp of Accident and was killed on the southeast side of Accident near Aiken Miller Road. The black bear hunt began Monday in Allegany and Garrett counties after 3,300 applications were filed and 220 permits granted. Officials said 30 bears had been checked in by 9 p.m. Monday. The hunt will continue until the 55 to 75 bear harvest quota has been reached.
John A. Bone / Cumberland Times-News"

http://www.times-news.com/local/images_sizedimage_294232150/resources_photoview


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Michael Ludgate - forum administrator
The Canaan Institute http://www.canaaninstitute.org/

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[Mike_L]

near Sarah and Tod's home ...




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