Watch out for bears in dry summer
Thirst or hunger may drive animals into populated areas
It may not be long before bear reports and sightings hit the headlines in Northern New Mexico. That’s because drought season can drive bears into populated areas looking for food not readily available in the wild.
“It kind of works the same way,” said New Mexico Game and Fish Department bear and cougar biologist Rick Winslow. “When we have these really dry summers we have an increase in conflict activity with bears.”
The department issued a statement Friday warning campers of increased bear activity in the Jemez Mountains. There have been multiple sightings of bear cubs in the area of Forest Road 376, and recreationists should be aware and take the precautions listed at right. Forest Road 376 is on is the west side of the Jemez Ranger District, is about 15 miles long and
is located roughly 40 miles southwest of Los Alamos in the area of Fenton Lake State Park.
Recent rainfall in New Mexico needs to continue to alleviate the drought, and two days of rain is far from a drought-buster, the National Weather Service in Albuquerque said this week.
“We have gotten reports of bears in several areas in the state,” said Winslow, noting reports of chickens killed in Placitas and Raton. “That’s pretty normal. When there is a drought situation like this they tend to get into trouble a little quicker.”
That’s because “when it’s so hot and dry as it is, the resources the bears depend on … are not available and the bears start to move more to look for food.”
When their typical food — grasses and forbs [plants other than grass] — is not available, bears turn to eating a lot of ants and beetle larvae, said Winslow. “But it’s a lot of work,” Winslow said. If you see overturned rocks and logs in the woods it’s likely bruin-based because the green stuff is in short supply, he said.
It’s time for homeowners to consider precautions to keep bears at bay. “Anything they can get at easily they will go after,” Winslow said.
A black bear that recently prowled in Rio Rancho was tranquilized and relocated by Game and Fish officers.
A bear was killed recently in collision with a car in southwestern Kansas near the Oklahoma border, and officials there said wildfires in Colorado and New Mexico and regionwide drought may have put bears on the move. Winslow said he was not surprised by the Kansas incident because New Mexico bear habitat extends to the Oklahoma border.
Black bears are the smallest of the three bear species found in North America. They typically range from four to seven feet long and can weigh from 200 to 600 pounds.
In July, Winslow will be in the field checking on bear forage for when bears later bulk up for hibernation. Because there were no late frosts, “things look pretty good for this fall’s food resources.”
There have been some media reports that changing weather patterns may prompt some bears to forgo winter hibernation. That prospect would require a lot of research.
“Some of our male bears don’t hibernate at all, ” said Winslow. Hibernation is food resource-based. “If there is food there is no need for them to hibernate.”
We have gotten reports of bears in several areas in the state. That’s pretty normal. When there is a drought situation like this they tend to get into trouble a little quicker.” Rick Winslow, New Mexico Game and Fish Department bear and cougar biologist