Black Bears May be Safer than Most Think

In 2016 in Florida, the state government decided to sanction a hunt for black bears due to a perceived overpopulation of the animals and the seemingly connected threat. Many of these bear hunts, as they are called, have been held across the country whenever there are large populations of bears in an ecosystem, but do these bear hunts achieve their intended purpose? Do black bears even pose a threat to humans at any population level? There is at least one official in Hillsboro County that believes black bears do not hold a danger to the public, and bases this on the knowledge and science of the average black bear’s diet and routine.

Stacy White is a veteran of the wildlife in Florida and could not stand by while people misrepresented the black bear as a dangerous, human-hunting alpha predator. After seeing a constituent describe the black bear as such in a public forum, he sought out some information about our current understanding of a black bears’ diet. According to Gillin (2010), he found that the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission reports that a black bear’s diet “usually consists of 80 percent plants, 15 percent insects and 5 percent animal matter” (para. 6). This explicitly shows that the average black bear is disinterested in hunting humans, or really any animal in general. They mostly bumble around with the lower-than-the-knuckle variety of grasses or roots and are known to stalk a berry bush from time to time. Stacy White used the specific term apex predator when refuting the claim that black bears are dangerous to humans, in part, because of the connotation the term has with harm. Apex predator sounds dangerous, but the black bear is technically an apex predator only because no other animal in its ecosystem can consistently (or efficiently) hunt the bear for food. This nuance is important to understand because while a black bear has the tools and appearance of a fierce hunter, they usually stick with the non-moving variety of prey, or the easy to scoop, clumped-together bee swarm.

While being a veggie-preferring omnivore means humans are not the top priority for the black bear’s consumption, most of our food and trash can be. Traditionally, people might consider bears to be hunters or fishers, but as big as they are, black bears tend to act more so as scavengers compared to other bear species. Most of the animals they eat are left behind by other predators, which unfortunately tends to smell like our own trash and scraps. This coincidence can lead to encounters with humans, or for black bears to follow their nose all the way into a populated area. These situations can be dangerous, and when a few happen in a short period of time, hysteria commences. However, there is little to fear. When the National Park Service, NPS (2018), addresses the public on avoiding bear encounters, they caution people to stay back and be aware of the area you are in. Unless startled, if a bear notices a human nearby, it very likely will flee to avoid confrontation. (para. 2). Compared to a recent finding that the famous T-rex could only run a measly twelve miles per hour, resulting in many concluding the beast spent its time scavenging large carcasses instead of chasing them, the black bear seems to be along that thread in the public’s perception-versus-reality of the animal. This must all be noted apart from a female out with her children, or cubs as they are called. An attack is still not likely in black bears at least, but one must not accidentally separate a sow from her cubs because the mother will quickly take notice. However, there has never been a report of a human killed by a black bear defending her cubs. Alas, the erosion of natural bear ecosystems or food options and an encroaching civilization into their habitats can sometimes lead to an outlier of an encounter with a bear in a situation with no way to flee, or no other option for food; this is extremely rare and could surely be avoided by a more responsibly-minded building approach and a surgically executed attempt to separate and appease both organisms. Simple implementations such as bear-proof trash cans, extensive projects like long-term studies by various wildlife organizations into the bears’ populations, diets, routines and habitats, and all efforts in between go a long way to making a happy world for lady and bear to share.

Black bear encounters resulting in death do occur, but have historically been rare. According to two biologists at the Wildlife Research Institute in Minnesota (2010), “Black bears have killed people—63 across North America since 1900” (Rogers & Mansfield, para. 3). The two go on to say that the likelihood of a deadly encounter with dogs, flying stinging insects, lightning, or even other humans is much more common (Rogers & Mansfield, 2010, para. 5). While the biologists surely do feel safer in the woods than in the streets, the statistics may well be pointing to evidence that defends their point. The diet and innate nature of the black bear are clear influences on the number of deadly encounters with them. They don’t need or want us for food. An unpleasant encounter with a bear of this species usually only results in a higher heart rate and at most welts from a dulled bear claw, not a deadly pursuit.

While the black bear hunt in Florida is attractive to hunters and generates tasty headlines for local news outlets, the reality of the solution and the problem is much more complex. Black bears pose almost no threat to humans, even in large numbers, even if it is a mother with her cubs. Admittedly, a hunt may be one of the options needed for population control but can often be argued for under the guise of human protection. Either way, the difference is important when choosing which words and rhetoric to use when speaking about different bear species and the problems they may pose. Phrases like apex predator or top of the food chain can give uninformed civilians the wrong impression and lead them to act incorrectly in an encounter. Blue whales are at the top of their food chain yet eat mostly plankton; black bears are the alpha in their ecosystem yet mostly use their eleven-inch claws to rip open termite nests in old stumps. The solution to the recent rise in black bear encounters is to educate the public on the proper actions to take when you spot a black bear or when a black bear spots you. Chances are you will both walk away a bit intimidated.