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e7cde9fa-c8c6-4de4-9eb3-e20e66d4e96e Bears: Behavior, Ecology, Conservation Describes the characteristics and behavior of black bears, grizzly bears, and brown bears, and looks at the impact of humans on their habitat Erwin A. Bauer December 1, 1996 159 Pages:

3e3d47e7-06c5-4ab9-a3da-84eb67806293 Joy of Bears A collection of breathtaking images and thought-provoking words sure to bring joy to your heart and enrich your spirit. Take an inspiring journey into the world of the great bear and discover the true and often unseen nature of black bears, grizzlies and polar bears. Celebrate all that is wild! (Proceeds from the sale of this book support Get Bear Smart Society's work helping people to understand and live with our neigh-bears.) Sylvia Dolson June 14, 2013 112 Pages:

092c0497-3d8e-484e-aa5a-78184700597c The Great American Bear A natural history of the habitats, behavior, biology, and relationships with civilization of the bears across America. Jeff Fair January 1, 1990 192 Pages:

BLACK BEAR MYTHS A problem for BEARS is not so much what we DON'T know, it's what we THINK we know that isn't true . Dr. Lynn Rogers Ph.D. For more information see www.bear.org Information provided by the Wildlife Research Institute and the North American Bear Center Download our Misconceptions About Black Bears Brochure Download Myth: Mother bears wake up in the spring and are surprised they have cubs! Fact: Mother bears may actually leave their den to bring in more bedding prior to the birth of cubs. They are restless and wakeful during labor. When their cubs are born, they are attentive to every cry. Myth: Bears stink! Fact: There is very little odor from a black bear—unless the bear has rolled in something. Generally they simply smell like the forest. Adult bears may have a slight musky odor during mating season. Myth: Bears are nocturnal Fact: Black bears are generally active half an hour before sunrise. They may nap once or twice during the day. They generally bed down for the night an hour or two after sunset. Bears may become nocturnal to avoid people. They also become nocturnal as they slow down in the fall before denning. Myth: Never get between a mother bear and her cubs! Fact: This warning is true for brown/grizzly bears. However, black bears mothers are highly unlikely to attack. Myth: When bears lose their fear of people they are more likely to attack Fact: Bears that are unafraid of people are less apt to flee. However, they are no more likely to attack than any other bears—and some studies have shown that they are less likely to attack. Many human-tolerant bears are killed because of this myth! Myth: Bears lurk in the woods waiting to attack people Fact: Black bears are more apt to quietly slip away before you ever see them. They are likely to run if they are surprised by you. If they don’t run, they are easy to chase away. Myth: A bear standing on its hind legs is about to charge Fact: A standing bear is simply trying to see, smell, or hear better than it can when on all fours. Myth: Bears Attack If They Sense Fear Fact: This is a common worry, but most people are afraid near bears and are not attacked. Myth: Relocating or killing a black bear will solve a conflict. Fact: Relocating an individual bear may temporarily solve a human-bear conflict. Public safety may occasionally require that an individual bear be killed. However, neither of these options are permanent, effective, long-term solutions. Relocated bears often try to return home where they feel comfortable. Myth: Black bears have poor eyesight. Fact: Bears have vision similar to us, and can see in color, too. Their night vision is very sharp and they detect movement quickly. Myth: Black bear attacks are common. Fact: Black bear attacks are extremely rare. For each person killed by a black bear: 2 by brown/grizzly bears, 13 by snakes, 17 by spiders, 45 by dogs, 120 by bees, 150 by tornadoes, 249 by lightning, 32,000 by humans Myth: If a black bear charges you, climb a tree. Fact: Black bears are excellent tree climbers, far better than you. If a black bear charges, stand your ground. The bear will likely break its charge and run away, or climb a tree to be safe from you. Keep standing your ground until a bear leaves, and then calmly walk away. Myth: Black bears are unpredictable. Fact: Like people, bears can show their intentions through body language and the sounds they make. The more you learn about bear behavior, the better choices you will make in their presence. Myth: Grizzly bears are brown and black bears are black. Fact: Black bears come in more colors than any other North American mammal. They can be black, brown, cinnamon, blond, blue-gray, or white.

TYPICAL YEAR FOR BLACK BEARS For more information see www.bear.org January The full moon in January is sometimes called the ‘bear moon’. Black bear cubs are generally born in January. The mother bear licks them clean, keeps them warm and moves into positions to make it easier for them to nurse. February All bears continue to hibernate. Newborn cubs continue to grow as mother bears care for them. March Hibernation continues. The testosterone (sex hormone) levels of adult male black bears begin to rise. April The snow melts and bears leave their dens. Adult males leave their dens first while mothers with cubs are the last to leave their dens. Food is very scarce. Adult males begin to roam. Most other bears remain lethargic (sluggish), eating mainly aspen catkins and willow catkins (pussy willows). All bears lose weight at this time of year. May Green plants begin to grow and trees begin to sprout leaves. The bears’ lethargy (sluggishness) ends. They begin to eat sprouting grass, emerging herbs and young aspen leaves. Cubs taste what their mother eats, but swallow very little of it. They still rely on their mother’s milk. Mother bears that are nursing young cubs continue to lose weight. Other bears slowly begin to gain weight. June Green plants mature and toughen, making most of them inedible for the bears. Ant pupae become abundant and bears add them to their diet. Mating season begins and males roam widely to find females without cubs. Cubs begin eating solid food, especially ant pupae from logs their mother opens for them. Mothers stop losing weight. Others bears gain weight slowly. July Cherries, blueberries, serviceberries, wild sarsaparilla berries and raspberries ripen and become major foods. All bears gain weight rapidly if these berry crops are good. August Viburnum berries, dogwood berries, wild plums, hawthorn berries, mountain-ash berries, and hazelnuts (their favorite) ripen. All bears continue to gain weight. September Acorns ripen. Berries and hazelnuts become scarce. Where acorns are abundant, bears feed and fatten on them. Other bears begin losing weight. Cubs stop nursing. Bears begin to become lethargic (sluggish) and some enter dens to begin hibernation. October Most bears enter their dens and begin a light hibernation. Cubs born last winter will share their mother’s den. November Hibernation deepens. A hibernating bear’s heart rate slows to as low as 8 beats per minute. Breathing becomes as slow as one breath every 45 seconds. Eggs fertilized in the late spring or early summer implant in the uterus and begin to develop. December Hibernation continues. Cubs will sleep through their first birthday (in January) without celebrating.

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30b45ae2-1efd-4c07-83a3-1f4b88a96dbd BLACK BEAR DIET Beaked Hazel, American Hazel - Nuts Corylus cornuta, Corylus americana July, August Summer, Autumn Beaked and American Hazel are prolific shrubs that grow in the forest understory and at the edge of forests, often referred to as the Forester’s nightmare as the shrubs they are often thickly distributed and difficult to navigate through. Hazelnuts are one of the most important and preferred bear foods in northeastern Minnesota. Bears begin eating the soft developing nuts in June and make them their main food in July & August when the nuts ripen.

a63142ed-4cf1-4d7f-83b9-fd1eeb6d988c Hornet Nest Remnants Bears feed on high fat/protein hornet brood.

71952395-0fcd-41a8-8957-a9654216cc7b BLACK BEAR DIET Skunk Cabbage Symplocarpus foetidus May Spring Skunk cabbage grows in wetlands in eastern North America. It gets it name from the smell given off when a leaf is bruised. It’s the first plant to bloom in the spring(Feb. or more often March). It can generate its own heat to melt the snow around it. Foul smell is to attract flies for pollination. Forms large colonies of plants. Plants can live for 20 years.Skunk cabbage has medium toxicity to humans as it contains calcium oxalates in its raw form. Plant grows deeper into the mud, so in effect it grows downwards as it grows older. It is nearly nearly impossible to remove the roots of older plants. This is often the first plant that bears eat out of the den (the roots in particular).

141a9d28-e9c3-4058-81fd-2221b13ce354 BLACK BEAR DIET Aspen - Big-Tooth, Quaking or Trembling Populus grandidentata, Populus tremuloides April-catkins, May-leaves Late Winter, Spring Big Toothed Aspen is one of the last trees to leaf out in the spring. The most abundant and widespread tree in Minnesota is the aspen; a fast growing pioneer tree species. After a clear cut or a fire, Aspen will often be the first tree to grow back. Aspen catkins are an important spring(April)food for black bears delivering approximately 14% protein. Aspen leaves are eaten by black bears in May when trees start leafing out.

f0aa5575-c152-4a54-9d5e-3b7b0fe79a9f BLACK BEAR DIET Baneberry - Red and White Actaea rubra, Actaea pachypoda Never Eaten These attractive native bushes are in the buttercup family. They produce red or white berries and the entire plant is toxic, but the roots and berries are the most poisonous. Black bears do not eat the berries or the plant.

f87dd778-7436-404e-8ed9-572adfa9b996 Beauty Within the Beast: Raising Orphaned Bear Cubs in the Alaskan Wilderness An innocent act of kindness turns a bear into a dangerous marauder and when she is killed she leaves her three cubs without a mother. Stephen Stringham and his new bride decided to raise these three orphan cubs in the Alaska wilderness. Together, they taught Ontak, Chrislee, and Jonjoanak about which plants they could eat and how to fish and hunt. Dr. Stringham's extensive scientific background made him an ideal teacher of the foraging skills and the social skills they would need to live in a bear's world. In the process of teaching them, Stringham learns from the cubs how bears express fear, anger, and how to appease defensive bears and intimidate the aggressive ones. He and his wife would develop trust and respect through their affection and play, helping to heal the cubs' emotional wounds and decrease their aggression and violence. As the Springhams' bond with their furry charges deepens, they realize that it is a connection that is all too uncommon between people and animals. When Dr. Stringham is told by the Department of Fish and Game to destroy the bears, the depth of that bond would be tested. Beauty within the Beast is a heartwarming true story of how people and animals can find common ground and live in harmony on earth. Stephen F. Stringham PhD January 1, 2013 288 Pages: