Black bears became active earlier than usual in Southeastern Arizona this year, and some of the big critters are posing problems for people, state wildlife officials say.
Troublesome behavior by bears has included killing chickens, apparently blowing an electrical transformer, visiting a trailer park, and dropping by a campground north of Tucson, according to the Arizona Game and Fish Department.
“We had a relatively warm winter and a relatively dry winter, and it appears that some bears never fully bedded down” in what’s commonly known as hibernation, said Mark Hart, spokesman for the department.
“Bears usually bed down by the end of December and don’t typically emerge until March,” Hart said. “The first reported bear sighting this year was in January at Fort Huachuca” near Sierra Vista.
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The early black bear activity has led to increased sightings near communities and prompted wildlife officials to advise increased caution.
RECENT INCIDENTS
Game and Fish officials have reported incidents including these:
- A female bear and two cubs apparently killed up to 16 chickens at a bed and breakfast lodge in Aravaipa Canyon northeast of Tucson on the weekend of May 10-11.
- A bear knocked out an electrical transformer after climbing a tree earlier this month in the York Valley area between
- Duncan
- and Clifton. The bear ran to a trailer park before being scared off by law officers.
- A bear approached a bed and breakfast site in the Huachuca Mountains near Sierra Vista on May 8 and was chased away by the property owner’s dogs.
- Earlier this year, a bear dropped by the Peppersauce Campground northeast of Tucson, prompting campers to abandon the site.
A BIT ABOUT BEARS
Hart provided some information about black bears, the only bear species found in Arizona.
- Fur color varies and includes brown, cinnamon and blond even though the animals are known as black bears.
- Adult bears are 3 to 3
- ½
- feet tall when on all four feet.
- Weight ranges from 125 to 400 pounds, with males being larger than females.
- Bears eat acorns, berries, insects and cactus fruits.
- They live in forests, woodlands, chaparral habitats and desert riparian areas.
- They roam an area of 7 to 15 square miles and are most active at dawn and dusk.
- Black bears can live up to 25 years in the wild. Females produce two to three cubs born in January or February.
AVOIDING CONFLICTS
“Most conflicts are caused by people unintentionally feeding bears, often by allowing them access to household garbage, bird feeders, garden areas or trees bearing fruit,” said Raul Vega, regional supervisor for the Game and Fish Department. “Fed bears can lose their fear of humans and begin to associate humans with food, sometimes causing property damage and even injuring people.”
Conflicts between humans and bears can be limited if people secure garbage until the day of pickup, avoid leaving pet food outdoors and pick up fruit and birdseed that has fallen to the ground.
BEAR ENCOUNTERS
If you see a bear in the distance, alter your route to avoid it, wildlife officials advise. If a bear approaches, take measures to discourage it:
- Make yourself appear as large and imposing as possible.
- Don’t run or play dead.
- Stay calm, continue facing the bear, and slowly back away.
Don’t feed wildlife
Arizona Game and Fish Department officials are again warning residents not to feed wildlife.
The agency said a woman on Tucson’s northwest side was recently cited for illegally feeding wildlife after being warned against feeding javelina.
Illegal wildlife feeding carries a maximum fine of $300. Offenders can also be charged with criminal nuisance, which carries a fine up to $750, the agency said in a news release.
Nuisance javelina are rarely relocated from populated areas successfully, the agency said. If javelinas pose a safety hazard or injure a person, they have to be killed, the department said.
