Black bear face to face in autumn brush

The Story

An American black bear fills the frame, ears up, brown muzzle pointed straight at the lens, autumn brush glowing behind it. It is looking right back, and the next decision belongs to the person behind the lens.

Two field marks are on show: erect, rounded ears and a long brown muzzle, paler than the dark body fur. Coat color proves little by itself, since black bears can also be cinnamon, blonde, blue-gray or even white.

The Adirondack Mountain Club made this short tip for hikers in New York's Adirondack Park. Meetings there are uncommon, and the likeliest hours fall between dusk and dawn. That window takes in the species' busiest times, since black bears are generally most active at dawn and dusk.

A big part of the advice is about food, and the species explains why it matters: black bears smell better than dogs. Keep food on you, in a bear canister, or hung out of reach where land managers allow it, and leave nothing tasty in a pack dropped by the trail. A bear that gets fed this way learns that approaching people pays, and New York's DEC warns that unintentional feeding may in the end be deadly for the bear if it becomes a greater threat to people and property.

Distance gets a field test. Hold out a thumbs-up, close one eye and try to hide the bear behind the thumb. If it shows around the edges, back away.

If the bear stays put, or strolls into camp at dinner, look big: stand tall, grab a branch, trekking pole or canoe paddle, wave and make noise. Most bears run. A few hiss, growl or bluff charge, generally when guarding cubs, sick or injured, or used to human food, and a bluff can end with the bear turning away at the last second. Then put an obstruction between you and the bear (a hiking partner, the club notes, will do in a pinch) and get away. Afterward, report the encounter to a ranger or a DEC official.

Field Guide

An Adirondack Mountain Club tip for meeting a black bear: measure your distance with a thumb, guard your food, and stand tall if the bear stays. Full field guide for the American black bear

Habitat

• Black bears range from northern Alaska across Canada to Labrador and Newfoundland, and south through most of the U.S. into central Mexico.Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan
• In the Smokies, dens are often in hollow stumps, tree cavities or dense brush piles, and many bears den high in standing hollow trees.National Park Service
• Black bears use bed sites in forest, usually a simple shallow dip in the leaf litter, the kind of autumn woodland this bear stands in.Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan

Behavior

• In this clip
  Black bears have an exceptionally keen sense of smell, better than a dog's, with reasonable eyesight and hearing. The advice here keeps food on you, in a canister, or hung out of reach.Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
• In this clip
  A bear may bluff by charging and then turning away at the last second. Bluff charging is one of the rare confrontational responses the clip describes.National Park Service
• In this clip
  Black bears are generally crepuscular, most active at dawn and dusk, the two ends of the dusk-to-dawn window the clip gives for meetings.Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan
• Before hibernation a bear can take in 12,000 to 20,000 calories a day, about 700 to 800 acorns.Minnesota Department of Natural Resources

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