Differentiating Lion and Bear claw marks in trees?

[TheObserver]

I can only find little information on this, that bears hug the tree more when climbing leaving a kind of diagonal mark where as cat is more straight down on average, they both have 5 front claws but maybe cat leaves 4 marks instead of 5 more often? And sometimes the bears will peel bark bark completely for sap.

Any other way to tell the difference?

[Squamch]

Bears leave black hair in the bark. Provided it's a black type of bear.

[horshur]

Honestly never seen much for cat marks on tree's ever. Heard rumor of scratching posts but if they do it is pretty rare. As for climbing a cat really does not leave to much for marks unlike a bear which normaly has to dig in pretty hard if it is of any size. Used to think the scratch marks and tearing I seen on like fence pole kinda size cedar may have been cougar but never could verify it till few years back I watched a squirrel upside down tearing at the same cedar pole collecting fiber against its belly and run off down a hole at its midden. Also some realy convincing claw marks on trees are marks left by woodpeckers pecking out a larva gallery .

[horshur]

When bear peels back the bark he is after the cambium and he scrapes it with his teeth..it doesn't look like claw marks at all.. Moose sometime will scrape Pine similiar but it's at least 4 feet high.

[TheObserver]

Honestly never seen much for cat marks on tree's ever. Heard rumor of scratching posts but if they do it is pretty rare. As for climbing a cat really does not leave to much for marks unlike a bear which normaly has to dig in pretty hard if it is of any size. Used to think the scratch marks and tearing I seen on like fence pole kinda size cedar may have been cougar but never could verify it till few years back I watched a squirrel upside down tearing at the same cedar pole collecting fiber against its belly and run off down a hole at its midden. Also some realy convincing claw marks on trees are marks left by woodpeckers pecking out a larva gallery .

I know the male Lions will scratch trees vertically marking their territory, not sure if all the way throughout or more on the border of their territory (iirc its on the perimeter/border or where territories with other Lions do slight overlaps) but all the sources I have been reading say it and I think i've found some in addition to ground scrapes trying to narrow things down in some spots I got males on cams.

Although more interested in the territorial markings, also interested in the climbing and what you say makes sense about them vs Bear and the body weight being a factor.

I found some large cedars and it sounds exactly like what your describing, I even took pictures and marked them, but probably a squirrel

[horshur]

I don't think they do that marking vertically on a tree honestly..been following them around long time now but it is in the lore so maybe some truth in it.It isn't common though cause I would have seen some evidence of it by now.

[srupp]

Thank you horshur...always enjoy your tremendous knowledge seen lots of cat sign over the years and a few cats...the big cats seemed to be always moving..obviously knew I was there...while the lynx could be seen just sitting there .did see one cougar sitting on his ass with a grouse he had just caught.

seen one lion cross a very small opening and head up a tree...I went over to the tree the lion had went up..looked long and hard couldnt see a damn mark..nothing at all from just climbing .It was fall/winter snow on the ground tracks to the tree...no climbing marks.

cheers
Steven

[caddisguy]

Honestly never seen much for cat marks on tree's ever. Heard rumor of scratching posts but if they do it is pretty rare. As for climbing a cat really does not leave to much for marks unlike a bear which normaly has to dig in pretty hard if it is of any size. Used to think the scratch marks and tearing I seen on like fence pole kinda size cedar may have been cougar but never could verify it till few years back I watched a squirrel upside down tearing at the same cedar pole collecting fiber against its belly and run off down a hole at its midden. Also some realy convincing claw marks on trees are marks left by woodpeckers pecking out a larva gallery .

I think you just solved a mystery for me. I've pondered about cedar trunks that appear to have been shredded 10 feet up. Always wondered if it was like a scratching post for cougar or bobcats jut on the basis I couldn't think of anything else.

Squirrels! Yep there are lots of those around the area. Now I'm laughing at myself :D