Black Bear Program

General Information

Black Bear Programs

Mississippi is home to two subspecies of black bears. The American black bear (Ursus americanus) is found in the northern one-third of the state and the Louisiana black bear (Ursus americanus luteolus) occurs in the southern two-thirds. The Louisiana black bear (recently removed from the Federally Threatened Species list), as well as the American black bear, are both classified as Endangered under Mississippi law. The two subspecies vary only in skull morphology and genetic makeup; to the naked eye, they are indistinguishable.

The MDWFP Black Bear Program began in June of 2002 at the Mississippi Museum of Natural Science. The initial focus of the program was to conduct research on Mississippi black bears in an effort to learn more about this endangered species. At the time of the program's inception, it was estimated that there were less than 50 bears residing in the state. Today, estimates of our bear population have more than tripled. This population increase is due primarily to the recent appearance of female bears in our state, which has led to the births of numerous cubs in the last several years, something not documented in Mississippi in the previous 40 years. There are currently three breeding sub-populations of black bears in Mississippi. Additionally, general sightings of bears have increased dramatically all over the state, likely due to dispersing bears from populations in neighboring states. The Black Bear Program is now within the Wildlife Bureau of the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks and continues to conduct research and educate the people of Mississippi about our black bears. Another primary objective of the program is the prevention of conflicts between bears and people.

If you are experiencing problems involving black bears or want to report a recent bear sighting, please contact MDWFP at (601) 432-2199.

Anthony Ballard

anthony.ballard@wfp.ms.gov

(601) 432-2242

BearWise.org is a regional program based in the southeastern U.S. that shares ways to prevent conflicts, provides resources to resolve problems, and encourages community initiatives to keep bears wild. BearWise is supported by the 15 member-state Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (SEAFWA), and was developed by members of the Large Carnivore Working Group of SEAFWA's Wildlife Resources Committee.

History of Bears in Mississippi

Black bears have played a substantial role in the heritage and history of Mississippi. Native Americans used the black bear as a source of food, clothing, and goods for trade with European travelers. As settlers moved into the area, black bear hunting from horseback became a popular sport. There are few areas in the southeastern U. S. with as rich of a bear hunting tradition as Mississippi. The vast acreages of bottomland hardwood forests and impenetrable canebrakes of the Mississippi Delta were home to high densities of black bears at the turn of the century.

The lure of hunting bear from horseback with the aid of dogs created some of the earliest legends of bear hunting, while attracting many dignitaries and heads of state from across the country. Of course, no other bear hunt is quite as famous as the Teddy Roosevelt hunt. Roosevelt had long wanted to participate in a Delta bear hunt and was invited to do so in the fall of 1902. On November 14, his party hunted on Smedes Plantation in southwestern Sharkey County. The guide was a former slave named Holt Collier, the most accomplished bear hunter in the nation's history. On the day before the hunt, in a display of self-confidence, Collier predicted that he would help the president get a bear if he had to catch it and tie it to a tree himself. The rest, as they say, is history. Factual details of the hunt, and the life of Holt Collier, can be found in Minor Buchanan's book, Holt Collier: His Life, His Roosevelt Hunts, and the Origin of the Teddy Bear. Suffice it to say that they do not match the media accounts or the political cartoon "Drawing the Line in Mississippi". It is true, however, that Roosevelt declined the opportunity to kill a bear not taken in fair chase. After hearing about the event, a toy maker requested the President's permission to name his small stuffed bears “Teddy's Bear”, hence the birth of one of Americas most famous children's toys.

By the early 1900s, bear numbers saw a sharp decline due to over hunting and habitat destruction and fragmentation. Black bears were nearly extirpated from the Mississippi landscape with less than a dozen individuals remaining. In 1932, the black bear was given statewide protection and was later included on the first list of rare and threatened vertebrates of Mississippi in 1974. In 1984, the black bear was listed as an endangered species in the state, where it remains today.

Living With Bears - Human / Wildlife Conflicts

It is widely agreeable that observation of bears is best at a distance. When bears come too close to our homes, hunting camps, favorite fishing hole, or campsite, it ultimately results in some sort of conflict. Bear conflicts generally revolve around one thing…FOOD. Bears are opportunistic foragers and will take full advantage of any easy meal. In most any case with a nuisance bear if you remove the food, you remove the problem. A primary objective of the MDWFP is to provide technical guidance to reduce human conflict with bears. As with many things, prevention is the best solution to any bear conflict.

NEVER INTENTIONALLY FEED BEARS!

Intentionally feeding bears habituates bears to humans. Bears that no longer have a fear of humans can become extremely dangerous. In addition to becoming comfortable around humans, the most dangerous aspect of feeding bears is bears associate humans with acquiring FOOD. Bears come to expect a free meal and will come to humans to get it; the danger comes when bears DEMAND their free meal. Feeding a bear around your home not only puts you at risk of personal injury and property damage but will put your neighbors and their property at risk as well.

Why Not Just Relocate The Bear?

In order to move the bear, it must first be captured, immobilized, and then transported. This is a costly procedure that puts the bear at considerable risk. In addition, moving a bear that has grown accustomed to unnatural foods does not solve the problem but merely moves it to another area. Additionally, bears have an amazing homing instinct and will usually try to return to familiar territory. Along the way, they cross unfamiliar territory and can wander into urban areas or cross busy roadways, which can lead to fatal results for both bears and people.

Bear behavior

Mississippi black bears are normally very shy and secretive animals and are not aggressive towards humans. Black bears, by nature, are not predatory. Black bear attacks in general are very rare and in most cases are result of underlying causes, most of which are avoidable. There has never been a human attacked by a bear documented in Mississippi; however, bears are large, powerful wild animals and should be treated with caution and respect.

Bears have acute senses of hearing and smell, in many cases a bear will know you are coming and leave the area before you are aware of their presence. However, if you were to encounter a bear in the wild one of two actions are most common. The bear may immediately run away when it sees you or the bear may stand tall on its hind legs. Contrary to popular belief, this is not aggressive behavior of any kind and it is not getting ready to charge or attack. The bear is simply standing up to get a better look at what it has just encountered. Even in the case of a female with her young, generally bears do not aggressively defend their cubs. After the bear sees what you are, it will likely go back down on all fours and leave the area either walking or running.

If the bear feels cornered or stands its ground to protect its food, it will exhibit defensive aggressive behavior. This behavior is the bear’s way of saying “you are too close and need to back off.” The bear will “pump” the ground, appearing to do short choppy push-ups and you may hear a loud popping noise, which is the bear popping its jaws together. Quick snorts, or huffing sounds are also common during this type of behavior display. In some cases the bear may even “false charge”, meaning that the bear will quickly run within a few feet of you and stop.