cantkillathing
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I know this is a sensative issue for people but what are your thoughts, Do black bear have an impact on mule deer.
Is 22% a significant enough or does it need to be more before they are part of the problem?
Black bear (Ursus americanus)) and brown bear (Ursus arc-) predation on moose (Alces alces) and other cervids has recently been recognized as an important mortality factor influencing free-ranging populations in Alaska and Canada (Franzmann et al. 1980; Ballard et al. 1981; Verspoor 1983; Wilton et al. 1984). However, relatively few documented cases of bear predation on free-ranging cervids exist in the lower 48 states, and none exist in the northeastern United States. This paper documents three probable incidents of black bear predation on white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) neonates in a free-ranging population in the central Adirondack Mountains of New York State.
Isolated incidents of black bears killing neonate deer (Odocoileus spp..) have been reported. King (1967) observed a black bear take a single mule deer (O. hemionus) fawn on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. In southwest Alberta, Verspoor (1983) observed a black bear chase a mule deer dam and her fawn into a clearing before catching the fawn. Welker (1986) suggested that a black bear may have been responsible for the death of a radio-tagged mule deer neonate in Tehama County, California.
Additional studies suggest that black bear predation may exert a significant influence on cervid populations. Schlegel (1976) found that black bears killed 73.5% (25/34) of marked elk (Cervus elaphus) calves in north-central Idaho. Ozoga and Verme (1982) determined that black bears were responsible for 12 deaths of neonate white-tailed deer during 1973 and 1980 in a 252-ha enclosure in northern Michigan. They concluded that bears could impose a considerable drain on the annual recruitment of deer where both occur in appreciable numbers. In the LaSal Mountains of Utah, Smith (1983) found that black bears accounted for 22.7% (5/22) of summer mortality of mule deer fawns.
Is 22% a significant enough or does it need to be more before they are part of the problem?
Black bear (Ursus americanus)) and brown bear (Ursus arc-) predation on moose (Alces alces) and other cervids has recently been recognized as an important mortality factor influencing free-ranging populations in Alaska and Canada (Franzmann et al. 1980; Ballard et al. 1981; Verspoor 1983; Wilton et al. 1984). However, relatively few documented cases of bear predation on free-ranging cervids exist in the lower 48 states, and none exist in the northeastern United States. This paper documents three probable incidents of black bear predation on white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) neonates in a free-ranging population in the central Adirondack Mountains of New York State.
Isolated incidents of black bears killing neonate deer (Odocoileus spp..) have been reported. King (1967) observed a black bear take a single mule deer (O. hemionus) fawn on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. In southwest Alberta, Verspoor (1983) observed a black bear chase a mule deer dam and her fawn into a clearing before catching the fawn. Welker (1986) suggested that a black bear may have been responsible for the death of a radio-tagged mule deer neonate in Tehama County, California.
Additional studies suggest that black bear predation may exert a significant influence on cervid populations. Schlegel (1976) found that black bears killed 73.5% (25/34) of marked elk (Cervus elaphus) calves in north-central Idaho. Ozoga and Verme (1982) determined that black bears were responsible for 12 deaths of neonate white-tailed deer during 1973 and 1980 in a 252-ha enclosure in northern Michigan. They concluded that bears could impose a considerable drain on the annual recruitment of deer where both occur in appreciable numbers. In the LaSal Mountains of Utah, Smith (1983) found that black bears accounted for 22.7% (5/22) of summer mortality of mule deer fawns.
