Mammoth’s bears are still up, about and hungry

Secure your car, garage and porch

It is that time of year; Mammoth bears, already stressed by a droughty summer and poor berry crop due to an early spring freeze, are amping up their desperate attempts to fatten up before cold and dark sends them into their winter dens.

Like clockwork, that means an increase in the number of bears ‘getting into trouble (see below)’ as they try to stock up on Fritos and pizza and ham sandwiches and left-over burgers.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. Long time locals know even a candy bar left in a car overnight, or a cup of cereal spilled by the kids onto the car seat or floor, can bring a bear crashing through the car window and visitors figure it out fast, if they don’t already.

So, here’s a reminder because until there is ‘real’ snow outside, as in feet of it, the bears are only going to get more persistent in their attempts to find food.

While the Eastern Sierra does not have the more aggressive Brown bears, also called Grizzlies, they do have Black bears, socalled no matter what color their fur actually is. Black bears have an acute sense of smell; they can smell a scent from miles away. Although black bears rarely kill or seriously injure people, when they do, it is most often the result of predatory behavior by single males. Most conflicts between humans and black bears occur when bears access and become addicted to human food sources. That is why it is up to humans to keep both bears and people safe.

Here’s how:

• Do not leave food or fragrant items without properly storing them. Bears and wildlife have a keen sense of smell and will access your car, porch, garage, house with an open door or cabin if you don’t take the precaution of storing your food properly.

• Deposit trash in bear resistant trash cans, not in lockers.

• Non-food items such as plastic bottles, water bottles, coffee mugs, pet food, empty cans, trash, wrappers, cosmetics, grocery bags, boxes, and ice chests should not be left in a car, porch or garage. Removing such items will deter a bear from entering and doing damage to property.

• If you have a child who uses a car seat, please consider cleaning the car seat, because too often there are food particles found in car seats that may attract bears.