Woody cover and proximity to water increase American black bear depredation on cattle in Coahuila, Mexico
American black bear (Ursus americanus; hereafter, bear) depredation on cattle is a rare occurrence. Our study population of bears normally coexists with cattle ranching operations in Serranias del Burro, Coahuila, Mexico. However, we observed unusually high incidences of depredation upon cattle during a severe drought in 1999-2000. We documented >60 reports of calf kills among […]
Harvest rates and cause-specific mortality of American black bears in the wildland-urban interface of the Mid-Atlantic region, USA
There is a salient belief that bears (Ursidae) using the wildland-urban interface (WUI) are not vulnerable to harvest, and therefore, hunting is an ineffective management tool for bears in the WUI of the eastern United States; however, this question remains untested. We fit and monitored 116 American black bears (Ursus americanus; hereafter, black bear) with […]
Big enough for bears? American black bears at heightened risk of mortality during seasonal forays outside Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario
Protected areas may provide insufficient protection for carnivores such as bears (Ursidae) with large home ranges and extensive seasonal movements. Even in protected areas, harvest can be the main cause of mortality if parks are small or individuals live close to the boundary. At >7,600 km², Algonquin Provincial Park (APP) is the largest protected area […]
Evaluating methods to assess the body condition of female polar bears
An animal’s body condition provides insight into its health, foraging success, and overall fitness. Measures of body composition including proportional fat content are useful indicators of condition. Isotopic dilution is a reliable non-destructive method for estimating the body composition of live mammals, but can require prolonged handling times. Alternatively, bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) has promise […]
Patterns of movement of released female brown bears in the Cantabrian Mountains, northwestern Spain
Between 2008 and 2013, 3 female brown bears (Ursus arctos; 2 cubs-of-the-year and 1 2-yr-old) were rescued, rehabilitated in captivity, radiotagged, and released back to the Cantabrian Mountains, northwestern Spain. We characterized their daily and seasonal movements post-release to gain insights into their movement strategies and the viability of bears released in human-dominated environments. The […]
Indirect effects of bear hunting: a review from Scandinavia
Harvest by means of hunting is a commonly used tool in large carnivore management. To evaluate the effects of harvest on populations, managers usually focus on numerical or immediate direct demographic effects of harvest mortality on a population’s size and growth. However, we suggest that managers should also give consideration to indirect and potential evolutionary […]
Trends in brown bear reduction efforts in Alaska, 1980-2017
For >35 years Alaska, USA, has attempted to reduce brown bear (Ursus arctos) abundance through adoption of progressively more liberal hunting regulations. We document these changes in a portion of Alaska we term the Liberal [brown bear] Hunting Area (LHA) constituting 76% of Alaska’s area. In most instances, regulation liberalizations were intended to reduce brown […]
Inguinal hernia causes mortality in an adult American black bear
Herniation of viscera induced by medical intervention has been described in carnivores, yet occurrence of hernias causing wild carnivore mortality, including in bears, remains unknown. We describe an inguinal hernia, intestinal entrapment and rupture, and peritonitis causing mortality in a male American black bear (Ursus americanus). In the autumn of 2014, a free-ranging, adult bear […]
Assessment of key reproductive traits in the Apennine brown bear population
Although knowledge of reproductive parameters is critical to project the probability of persistence of small and endangered populations, no such data are available for the relict Apennine brown bear (Ursus arctos marsicanus) population (central Italy). From 2005 through 2014, we compiled re-sight data on marked adult female bears (3 ≤ n ≤ 10/yr, for 78 […]
Food habits of a small Florida black bear population in an endangered ecosystem
The Highlands-Glades subpopulation (HGS) of Florida, USA, black bears (Ursus americanas floridanus) is small, genetically depauperate, and resides primarily within the endangered Lake Wales Ridge ecosystem, which has lost >85% of native habitat to land development. Habitat loss can reduce availability of critical natural foods and cause bears to increase reliance on anthropogenic foods (i.e., […]
