Looking for:
How big do black bears get in north carolina - how big do black bears get in north carolinaHow big do black bears get in north carolina - how big do black bears get in north carolina -
All about black bears. Learn the bear facts and common myths..Largest Black Bears in the Country
As a result they grow bigger in North Carolina than anywhere else. Bear Facts. There is an average of 4 bears per square mile here. The current world record black bear is from Eastern NC and weighed lbs. There are bears over lbs still walking around Eastern NC today. Black bears have a prey mentality instead of a predator mentality. It is for a better view and to get a better scent.
Black bears are found in 35 states. Water St. Black bear expansion has occurred naturally as bears have moved into suitable habitats. The black bear is an omnivore with a diet of both plants and animals. It varies in color: in North Carolina, the black bear is usually black with a brown muzzle and sometimes a white patch on its chest, commonly referred to as a chest blaze.
In other areas of North America, black bears can be a very common brown color or a more rare blue and white. All bear species have five toes on each foot and each toe has a sharp curved claw enabling the bear to feed on insects and grubs in decaying logs.
Black bears rely mostly on their sense of smell and hearing due to poor eyesight, but are adept at climbing, running, swimming and digging. They have been clocked at speeds of 35 miles per hour over short distances. Bears prefer large expanses of uninhabited woodland or swampland with dense cover.
Lowland hardwoods, swamps and pocosins provide good habitat. Bears gain weight in autumn to prepare for winter denning, eating up to 20, calories per day during spring and summer, they eat 3, to 8, calories daily.
In North Carolina, bears enter their dens between late October and mid-January, and emerge in March or early April, depending on the weather and food availability. They use tree cavities, hollow logs, caves, rock outcroppings, slash piles, and thickets as dens. Sometimes they build a nest directly on the ground.
The black bear is a very shy, non-aggressive animal that avoids humans in most cases. Occasionally, bears wander into developed areas in search of food. In agricultural areas where corn, peanuts, soybeans and wheat are common, bears often feed on these crops. Due to rising bear and human populations, bears and people are increasingly coming into contact with each other in many parts of the state. To avoid negative interactions, bears should never have access to human foods, garbage, pet food or bird food.
Feeding bears rewards them for coming into residential areas. Bears feeding on unnatural food sources around your home may lose their fear of humans and will be more likely to approach people — a situation that rarely ends well for the bear and could have potential safety issues for humans as well!
If you see a bear, stay calm and keep a safe distance. If you encounter a bear at close range, back away slowly and make lots of noise. Approximately , acres of land have been designated as bear sanctuaries by the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission. These areas permit bear populations to thrive. Bear populations are stable or increasing in most areas of North Carolina.
Bear hunting is a tradition dating back to early Native Americans who depended on bears for meat, fat to season foods, and hides to make clothing. Early colonists in North Carolina quickly learned from the Indian tribes and developed a strong bear-hunting tradition that continues into the 21st century.
Today, approximately 70 percent of hunters use hounds to pursue bears, including the Plott Hound—the official North Carolina state dog and famous bearhunting breed. The Plott Hound breed originated in the mountains of North Carolina around and is the only breed of dog known to have originated in this state. The comeback of the black bear is a North Carolina wildlife success story. In the mids, black bears were restricted to remote areas and reached very low numbers.
Since the s, over , acres of land have been designated as bear sanctuaries by the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission. These sanctuaries were key to the successful restoration of bears and are still vital to bear population management. Today, black bears are abundant and thriving in North Carolina. Regulated hunting is critically important in managing bear numbers. Bear hunting is a tradition dating back to early Native Americans who depended on bears for meat and hides.
Early colonists in North Carolina quickly learned from the tribes and developed a strong bear-hunting tradition that continues today. To learn more about this IDVD, visit www. Illustrated by J. Bear and cub photo used with permission from National Geographic.
Comments
Post a Comment