Trumpeter Swans at Deadman LakeWe saw no hunters today, although a neighbor saw several gathered a mile away, which could mean they were dragging a bear out.
So far, we’ve heard of four young to medium-sized males killed. We’re not certain, though because we haven’t been allowed to see any of them, and there is a proven tendency for hunters to err toward misreporting females as males. We hope that none of the females or big males we have known for years were taken.
As is usual this time of year, bears that had been coming to WRI have moved elsewhere—possibly to hunters’ baits. This is also the time of year the bears become more nocturnal whether they are hungry or not. The biggest males and pregnant females are the earliest to den, which further reduces the number of bears visiting feeding stations and bait sites.
Trumpeter Swans at Deadman LakeSomehow, most of the adult males and adult females pull through each year. Shadow is 27. Several of the males are 15-20 or more. Curiously, the bigger, older bears tend to be the calmest, most trusting bears at feeding stations but are wary survivors elsewhere.
We don’t know of a single complaint filed against any of the bears that frequented the feeding stations this year. These are the bears that are showing us how black bears and people can coexist. Occasionally, one of them is killed, like 11-year-old Shylow last year, and big old Little Harry a couple years ago. To get them, hunters crowded our property lines to shoot bears as they approach or leave the property. Similarly at the Vince Shute Wildlife Sanctuary some years back, hunters trespassed to get to the trail where big 16-year-old Duffy would leave the safety of the Sanctuary. Like the big males here at WRI, Duffy was known for his mild manner. He routinely took donuts from old Vince’s lips yet was wary and skittish in the woods. Elsewhere, his wariness had earned him a long life. He was killed only when hunters got close to him at the edge of the Sanctuary.
Ironically this evening, a hunter who trespassed onto both WRI property and a neighbor’s property was the same hunter who dialed 911 when a resident blew her horn on a road near where he was hunting near here two years ago. The saga goes on.
A joy today was seeing a pair of trumpeter swans on a pretty little lake only a quarter mile from where a pair lost 5 signets and left earlier this year. We hope they will be back breeding again next year.
The volunteers, now joined by a pair of research scientists from Delaware, are doing a great job mapping bear trails and avoiding hunters. A problem is building a sample size of bear encounters to their reactions. With many hours spent in the woods today, no one saw a single bear. What a fun group, and somehow they and the Lily Fans who have donated food money come up with wonderful dinners. Thank you.
Thank you all for all you do.
—Lynn Rogers, Biologist, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
All photos taken today unless otherwise noted.