WOMAN INJURED BY BEAR IN COLORADO SPRINGS

A large black bear injured an 85-year-old woman in the Skyway subdivision in Colorado Springs on September 19.

The woman had been leaving a bucket of sunflower seeds on a picnic table for birds, squirrels or whatever other wildlife wandered into her back yard. According to the woman, at least four bears were frequent visitors including the bear that bit her.

The woman stated that she had been out of town for five days. When she put the bucket of seeds on the table around noon September 19, the bear confronted her. She tried to make her way back into her house, but the bear bit her before she could get the door closed.

"She was very lucky to escape with only minor injures," said Shaun Deeney, DOW Area Wildlife Manager.

Public safety guidelines require that bears that injure humans must be destroyed.

"This is a clear indication of why wildlife experts say that a fed bear is a dead bear. Feeding bears causes them to become habituated, and lose their natural fear of people. Habituated bears are a much higher risk to injure, or even kill a human," said Deeney.

Bears and humans often live near each other year-round in Colorado with few troubles. However, when bears become accustomed to a human food source, it can change a bear's natural behavior.

A black bear's digestive system requires it to eat large amounts of food to maximize nutritional benefit. Colorado bears have evolved to look for food in different parts of their range during different times of the year. In the spring, bears feed on the tender shoots of new grasses and forbs. As seasons change, bears move to areas where they found natural foods in the past.

Colorado Black bears are naturally wary of people and tend to avoid humans if they can.

Their most critical feeding period is late summer and fall when black bears move to regions where acorns, chokecherries, serviceberry, and pinion pine nuts are plentiful. During this time of year, feeding is ongoing for up to 20 hours per day. A single bear might eat 20-30 pounds of food a day. Nearly all of the food is converted into fat to provide energy during hibernation.

In wild situations, black bears will feed until their stomach is full, and then wander in search of new feeding areas. Bears do not stay at a single berry or acorn site until all the food is gone. They fill up, move on, and perhaps come back. This behavior allows several bears to benefit from a natural food site, and the bears are constantly mobile.

On the other hand, if a human feeds a bear, it becomes accustomed to a continuous source of food year round in one spot and does not follow the same pattern as a "wild" bear. A habituated bear will remain near the food source and make efforts to protect the territory, even from the humans who provide the food.


For more information: http://wildlife.state.co.us/Education/LivingWithWildlife/BearCountry.asp.