The Greenville News

Looking for:

What kind of bears live in south carolina
Click here to ENTER

Typically male bear home ranges can be 18 to square miles, while home ranges for females are smaller, around square miles. A shortage of natural food sources and lack of rainfall can cause home ranges to vary greatly.

Black bears will travel large distances to find adequate food sources. In addition, juvenile bears, especially the males, must disperse to find new home territories. Dispersing juvenile bears have been sighted in many counties in South Carolina. These bears are usually transient and do not stay in the area for long. Black bears are opportunistic and will feed on whatever is readily available.

Their natural diet consists of berries, nuts and plant matter over 80 percent as well as insects and meat less than 20 percent. Bears use their incredible sense of smell to find alternative food sources such as garbage, bird feeders, outdoor pet food, agricultural crops, etc.

Black bears reach sexual maturity by 3 years of age. Peak mating season for bears is June and July. Males are territorial and will mate with as many females as they can. Young males are often driven away from their home territories by larger males during breeding season. Once the female is bred, she will turn her attention to feeding frequently and building fat reserves. Gestation is days and cubs are born in January or February while the female is hibernating.

Litters usually consist of two to four cubs. Cubs are dependent on their mother for food and protection until they reach 18 months of age. Wildlife – Species. See Regulations Complete hunting regulations. Helping people live responsibly with Black Bears. Student information on Black Bears. Food Habits Black bears are opportunistic and will feed on whatever is readily available.

The new trash bins are at all the picnic areas and two campgrounds. Park staff has also put up educational posters and fliers that talk about what to do and what not to do in bear country, and also incorporate bear safety into their interpretive and educational programs. The messages seem to be working. Stegenga said most of the bear sightings have been on hiking trails or crossing the park road. There has never been a report of a bear being aggressive in the park.

If you come around a corner and surprise them, just get up on a rock or log and make yourself look bigger, throw something at them, blow a whistle, wave your arms; just appear bigger than they are, wave arms. Secure it, tie it up on a tree limb, or put it in a car trunk, because bears have an excellent sense of smell. Even something like shampoo or toothpaste can attract them. Securing food sources and properly disposing of trash usually prevents any problems, he said.

Right now, bears are on the prowl for food since their natural food sources, such as blueberries, blackberries and cherries, are just starting to ripen, Stegenga said. Bears also dig up yellow jacket nests to eat the larva. In the fall, they will transition to eating acorns. But never trust a bear to turn down a free meal it smells at a campsite.

Playing dead is not appropriate. June A teenage boy is dragged from his hammock and mauled by a bear while sleeping in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. August A Candler man and his dog were injured in a scuffle with a bear, which started when the bear attacked the dog.

These 6 Out-Of-Place Creatures Have Been Spotted In South Carolina And You’ll Want To Steer Clear.SCDNR – Mammal – Species – Black Bear

 
Stegenga said most of the bear sightings have been on hiking trails or crossing the park road. Their natural diet consists of berries, nuts and plant matter over 80 percent as well as insects and meat less than 20 percent. Once the female is bred, she will turn her attention to feeding frequently and building fat reserves. Range Black bears can be found throughout North America. Tammy Wactor, wildlife biologist with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, said there is an estimated , black bears across South Carolina, with most found in the more heavily forested and mountainous Upstate region, and a smaller population of bears in the coastal areas. Bears use their incredible sense of smell to find alternative food sources such as garbage, bird feeders, outdoor pet food, agricultural crops, etc. Peak mating season for bears is June and July.