With bears on the rise, board mulling penalties for feeding wildlife

MANCHESTER — Manchester leaders are considering local penalties against people who feed wild animals, endangering themselves, their neighbors and the animals they mistakenly believe are helped by a handout.

“Feeding of wildlife poses real dangers to people and animals,” board of directors member Dennis Schain said Monday.

The board is to meet Tuesday, but the proposal likely will be tabled, Schain said, as he works with the town attorney and staff “to fine-tune the language to make certain that what we put in place is practical, effective, and enforceable.”

There is no state law prohibiting the feeding of wildlife, but the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection supports municipal regulations against the practice, agency spokesman Will Healey said.

“These efforts not only protect public safety, they also protect wildlife by preventing them from becoming habituated to human-associated food and reduce the risk of diseases associated with concentrated feeding,” Healey said.

Schain, a former spokesman for the state agency, is spearheading the effort to approve a Manchester ordinance, which he said “is the result of us being made aware of the possibility that people are leaving food for wildlife in their yards.”

The issues could become more serious as the state’s bear population, now concentrated in the northwest, expands into eastern Connecticut, Schain said.

State wildlife biologist Jason Hawley, who specializes in black bears and other carnivores, spoke at the Manchester board’s December meeting. One of the biggest problems with feeding wildlife is disease transmission, Hawley said, according to meeting minutes.

Chronic feeding of wildlife unnaturally congregates animals in one area, creating a perfect storm for disease transmission, Hawley said. Feeding also inflates wildlife populations, increasing the likelihood of vehicle strikes, particularly with deer, he said. Also, more deer means more Lyme-disease carrying deer ticks.

Also, the state’s black bear population is growing rapidly. The voracious omnivores can thrive in urban landscapes, and over the next 5-10 years, Manchester residents will be seeing more bears, state environmental officials say. Chronic, intentional feeding causes the animals to become extremely bold and aggressive, which can lead to home entries, Hawley said. DEEP’s message to municipalities is to let wild animals be wild; do not feed them.

Hawley also said DEEP is working on a statewide ordinance, according to the minutes. A legislative research report from November 2018 showed New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont have state rules prohibiting feeding black bears on private property. Penalties vary by state, but may include fines of up to $1,000 per violation, prison time and suspension of fish and wildlife license privileges, the report said.

The first offense under the Manchester ordinance would be a verbal warning and the second offense a written warning. Only a three-time offender would receive an infraction and fine, according to meeting minutes. The proposed rule is not intended to target people for tossing bread to ducks in a pond, Schain said, but rather to curb the regular, intentional feeding of wildlife that endangers the animals and the public.

Animal control officers would enforce the ordinance. Other board members said more discussion is needed about the process of educating the public and enforcement and appeals of the proposed rules.