Ungulate Saviors ...... Do you contribute?

[Fisher-Dude]

Yup, I hunt black bear every spring and grizzly when I get drawn.

An interesting presentation at the BCWF AGM by grizzly bear bio Clayton Lamb showed a graph of an analysis of 1,000 g-bear scats, that challenged many preconceived notions.

It showed that calving/fawning season, when we assume that g-bears gobble down lots of babies, was actually one of the lowest times for the presence of ungulate indicators in the scat. Most of the positive indicators were in the fall (gut pile time) and in the early spring (winter kill carrion time).

Yes, g-bears do kill and eat ungulates whenever they can, and they do eat fawns and calves, but it seemed that the massive mortality rate we were expecting May - July just wasn't there.

[bearvalley]

Yup, I hunt black bear every spring and grizzly when I get drawn.

An interesting presentation at the BCWF AGM by grizzly bear bio Clayton Lamb showed a graph of an analysis of 1,000 g-bear scats, that challenged many preconceived notions.

It showed that calving/fawning season, when we assume that g-bears gobble down lots of babies, was actually one of the lowest times for the presence of ungulate indicators in the scat. Most of the positive indicators were in the fall (gut pile time) and in the early spring (winter kill carrion time).

Yes, g-bears do kill and eat ungulates whenever they can, and they do eat fawns and calves, but it seemed that the massive mortality rate we were expecting May - July just wasn't there.

Theres some recently released data out of Alaska that solidly states that "bears are bigger killers than thought" when it comes to moose and caribou calves.
In a 3 year study (2011-2013) where 7 bears carried camera collars and GPS trackers data was compiled.
During the critical calving period, more than half of these bears meals came from moose and caribou calves, 20% from vegetation and 12% from adult moose. Snowshoe hares, waterfowl and other bears were also protein.
"Overall, the bears killed an average of 34.4 moose and caribou calves in 45 days.
One bear was credited with killing 44 calves in 25 days while another killed just 7 in 27 days.
So once again, we are faced with conflicting data.

[guest]

Interesting find by Claton FD.
that said, in the past, and some years ago hunting 7-42 and 7-50 for moose, elk and sheep, we were told by the Bio's then, the G bears were hammering the Elk and moose calves, yet they offered one tag for GBears, and every year we would see them and in a couple of occasions had confrontations with them.
In region 3 while hunting goats I've found numberous piles of Bear shat with Goat bones in it ...... Whether that be winter kill or what who knows.
in my opinion, for the many that say "wow what's happened to our moose deer and elk" most of them do not hunt Bear, or wack a Wolf or Yote when given the chance.
I do think it's one of the many management tools we gave to help the Ungulates.

wow BValley, those are some horrific numbers ........ That's why I say, Have at ER!

CT

[RiverOtter]

Just a comment on FD's post. I would think predation correlations in ungulate sign in bear scat would be a tough one to nail down with any conclusive authority on "numbers killed". Simply because so much predation can take place in such a short period of time. Also, I'd assume bears are apt to frenzy killing, similar to a weasel in a hen house and therefore not eat(or even feed on) every calf/fawn they kill.

[RiverOtter]

Long way of saying, I put a lot more stock in a gps/camera collar study, if the goal is to prove bears impact on ungulate pops with any certainty.

[Fella]

Interesting find by Claton FD.
that said, in the past, and some years ago hunting 7-42 and 7-50 for moose, elk and sheep, we were told by the Bio's then, the G bears were hammering the Elk and moose calves, yet they offered one tag for GBears, and every year we would see them and in a couple of occasions had confrontations with them.
In region 3 while hunting goats I've found numberous piles of Bear shat with Goat bones in it ...... Whether that be winter kill or what who knows.
in my opinion, for the many that say "wow what's happened to our moose deer and elk" most of them do not hunt Bear, or wack a Wolf or Yote when given the chance.
I do think it's one of the many management tools we gave to help the Ungulates.

wow BValley, those are some horrific numbers ........ That's why I say, Have at ER!

CT

Could the conflicting info be due to differences in available feed? For instance would a bear on the island (where there is an abundance of feed) necessarily be relying as much on fawns than a bear up in Alaska? I'm not an expert so educate me if I'm wrong.

[Bunner]

I take 2 black bears a year. Usually taken in the spring. I do what I can to help predator control and will never pass up on a wolf. Do put in for a griz draw every year but have only been drawn once

[Hublocker]

The role of American black bears and brown bears as
predators on ungulates in North America
Peter Zager
1,3
and John Beecham
2,4
1
Idaho Department of Fish and Game, 3316 16
th
Street, Lewiston, ID 83501, USA
2
Beringia South, 2723 North Lakeharbor Lane, Boise, ID 83703, USA
Abstract:
American black bears (
Ursus americanus
) and brown bears (
U. arctos
) can be important
predators on neonatal ungulates. They prey less commonly on adult ungulates. Bear predation appears
to be additive at low ungulate densities and may become compensatory as prey density approaches
carrying capacity,
K
. As such, black and brown bear predation can limit, but generally does not
regulate, ungulate populations. Maternal and neonatal physical condition, birth synchrony, and birth
mass may predispose neonates to predation or other mortality factors. Though black and brown bear
predation is an important proximate cause of ungulate neonatal mortality, habitat quality and quantity
are important ultimate factors influencing this dynamic. Manipulating bear populations to enhance
ungulate populations may be successful in the short-term if predation is additive, but long-term success
has not been demonstrated.
Key words:
additive mortality, black bears, brown bears, compensatory mortality, neonatal mortality, North America,
population dynamics, predation, ungulates,
Ursus americanus
,
Ursus arctos
Ursus 17(2):95–108 (2006

[two-feet]

I have seen a few thousand black bear scats in my life, rarely is there any hair in it. I have also heard that black bears skin their kills. So who knows. Knowing how good a sense of smell they possess, it would not be hard to imagine a bear sniffing out a fawn or calf for a meal. I am unsure of what impact blackies have on ungulates, would like to see more data.

I feel grizzlies are more comfortable as predators, I assume they kill many moose calves.

The one thing I know for sure is how much wolf shit I see every time I go anywhere in the bush, always a rope of moose hair. I can only imagine how many moose go down every day in the local area.

[Remsoles]

I would love to hunt bears more, have shot a few problem bear in the long past but I haven't bothered hunt them for a long time. I know the impact they have on calf numbers, and they need to be pared down some for sure. But I have zero interest in eating one when beef/other ungulates are available, so what is a guy supposed to do with a bear after he shoots it? Hide too, can only put so many bear rugs on the wall.
That said I do usually carry a bear tag in my pocket just in case I see a monster, but I've yet to go hunting specifically for bear.