People part of the problem with problem bears

By Linda Bell
Correspondent

Mountain residents know this is the season of bear sightings and close encounters. Bears must put on the calories they need to survive hibernation, or they will die during the winter.

Once bears find shortcuts, like food in trailers and garbage cans or easy pickings from birdfeeders, they are hooked, said Jim Jackson, district wildlife officer for the area north of the Red Feather Lakes Road to the Wyoming state line. Problem bears, he said, that have learned to look for food around human habitation get tagged the first time they are reported and relocated or put down the second time.

Jackson said he already relocated one bear that killed several goats this summer. The problem, he said, is finding places to release problem bears. Then once they are relocated, he said, they must recover from sedation, find food and water sources, find a den and fend off the resident territory holder. Often, Jackson added, one bear loses that fight, so in a way it is like a death sentence for some bear.

An added complication this summer, Jackson said, is the recent closure of the Red Feather Lakes transfer station on U.S. Forest Service land. With garbage piling up, he said, residents have been overflowing the Forest Service dumpster at the Westlake picnic area (now removed) or secreting their garbage into dumpsters belonging to stores or restaurants in the village. The closing of the transfer station has caused a bear problem both in the village and the outlying areas, he said.

Steve Znanenacek, district wildlife officer for Poudre Canyon and north to the Red Feather Lakes Road, said so far this bear season has been relatively quiet in his area, with only a few nuisance bears getting into trash and birdfeeders.

Earlier in the summer though, he said, a bear that learned cars might be a productive place to look for food opened an unlocked car door and crawled inside. When the likely shift in weight caused the car door to close, the bear spent quite a few hours in the car doing all manner of damage--but not finding any food. That bear has not been seen since, he added.

Znanenacek stressed that if people leave smelly barbecues, trash, birdfeeders or other temptations outside around their homes or cabins, especially at night, they become part of the problem in creating "problem" bears.

Jackson said Colorado Division of Wildlife policy is to help educate homeowners, campers, restaurant owners and communities to live in bear habitat without habituating the bears to look for unintentional handouts from humans. He recommended a pepper spray called Counterassault that will spray up to 30 feet and definitely discourage a bear from coming back.

Colorado law backs up these policies. Last year a new law went into effect that punishes the offense of knowingly luring a wild bear to food or edible waste by a warning for the first complaint, a fine of $100 for a first offense, $500 for a second offense and $1,000 for a third or any subsequent offense.

The DOW urges people who know of someone feeding or attracting bears to report the circumstances to a wildlife officer, who will help that individual understand how his or her actions are affecting a bear's future survival. Callers can reach the DOW in Fort Collins during business hours at 472-4300; the statewide headquarters call center number is 303-297-1192.