At the beginning of September, one of our tenants sent me a text with this picture at the front gate. They were letting me know there was a bear in the driveway, and then went on their way to work. I didn’t get the text immediately, but when I did take a moment to check texts, the picture sent a thrill through me. I’ve been seeing a lot of bear sign when out in the woods, and having one knocking on the door compelled me to go buy a bear tag for the season. August 1st- November 15th is bear season here in Washington State. You have to have a bear hunting tag, and a transport tag to harvest one during the designated season. Some areas of the state are closed to bear hunting, usually related to natural disasters like flooding or fire. State biologists closely monitor wildlife numbers throughout America, and their extensive data sets limits on hunting each species. Legal hunting in this country is closely monitored by biologists, to make sure populations of wildlife continue to thrive. Most wildlife is not legal to hunt. The few species that are, remain under close observation to maintain thriving populations, and will be removed from the hunting list in areas where animals are scares.
I do not usually set intentions to hunt predator animals, but I will harvest a black bear that’s hanging around the farm. I’ve got too many delicious temptations for a predator, and a bear will settle in to your larder if you let them. In the wilderness, bears have ancient trails through the landscape that take them to their different larders. Such places are staples of seasonal food they learn to rely on, like fruit and nut trees, rotting logs full of bugs, and good wetlands and clearings to graze in. A bear’s diet is mostly plant matter, but they are omnivorous and opportunistic. Black bears in our area have killed livestock. Since I invested in Kangal LGDs, my animals have remained safe. A few summers ago, I lost my Asian pear harvest to a bear. It got into the tree, ate all the fruit in one night, and pruned some branches. This year is an off fruit year, there are only a couple of pears on the tree, and I picked them last week.
The bear in this photo could be the same bear that took the pears a few years ago- they are certainly old enough. It almost looks like it’s checking over the fence to where the tree stands, just inside the gate. Bear’s use their sense of smell the most while foraging, it’s the largest part of the skull. This black bear’s nose is letting it know there is no fruit on the tree. The bear is also listening, hearing the person walking down the driveway, the dog barking, the chain on the gate being undone. These noises will push the bear off, as it cannot fully assess the threat level of all this noise, and better back off to wait for a more opportune moment to explore the area further. If this bear was a grizzly, we’d be working with a completely different set of principals in management. I did not want to live somewhere with grizzlies, and am so thankful we only have black bear to contend with. If you are not clear on the differences between these two species, take a minute to study the comparison below.
Yes, the sign says grizzly’s live in Washington, but only in The North Cascades. They are not this far south in our state, and most likely will never get down here, because there is not nearly enough habitat for them to roam. If grizzly’s were to return to this area, I would stop my sheep operation and stop planting fruit trees. Brown bear’s are a serious threat to people, and I’m not excited to try producing food in their territory, then trying to keep them out of it. Black bears are generally scared of people, brown bears will stalk and kill people. We are not a threat to them, and rightfully so, those bears are huge and mean business. This does not mean a black bear is no threat. I always show a healthy respect to predator animals, and the one that came past our gate is large for bears in this area. It would be a serious threat if it charged, and they can. Thankfully, this bear went merrily on its way, but could come back through any time. Stay tuned! We’ll certainly be writing about a harvest when and if one happens.
