|
Bear/human interaction
Despite
being large animals, bears often coexist in
surprisingly close proximity with humans. Despite their large size,
bears, like many other forest animals, are adept at moving through
wooded or rugged terrain without detection. Bears will generally avoid
contact with humans, and are usually aware of a human's presence long
before the human is aware of the bear.
As a result, encounters are
typically avoidable and rare. However, bears are opportunistic feeders,
and will generally take food where it is available. When humans provide
feeding opportunities, such as left out garbage, food stored outside,
or deliberate feeding, the chance of confrontation escalates. As a bear
begins to associate human presence with food, it may lose its shyness
and become a potentially dangerous pest.
Conflicts
may also arise in situations where the bear
regards a human as an immediate threat to itself, its cubs, or food
cache (which is one reason that found animal carcasses should be
avoided). In a chance encounter with a bear, the best course of action
is usually to back away slowly in the direction that you came.
Speak
in a loud, calm tone to make sure the bear is aware of your presence
and will not be caught off guard. The bear will rarely become
aggressive and approach you. In order to protect yourself, some suggest
passively lying on the ground and waiting for the bear to lose
interest.
Another
approach is to constantly maintain an obstacle
between you and the bear, such as a thick tree or boulder. A person is
much more agile and quick than a bear allowing him or her to respond to
a bear's clockwise or counter-clockwise movement around the obstacle
and move accordingly.
The
bear's frustration will eventually cause
disinterest. One can then move away from the bear to a new obstacle and
continue this until he or she has created a safe distance from the
bear. When encountering a bear, one should never look directly into the
bear's eyes. This action can be misconstrued by many wild animals as an
aggressive act.
Just
like humans, a painful spray in the eyes works wonders against a bear.
Back to home |
