GOVERNOR
PATRICK JOINS STATE ENVIRONMENTAL OFFICIALS AND BIOLOGISTS ON BLACK BEAR
SURVEY
CONWAY – Monday, March 4, 2013 – Governor Deval Patrick today joined
Massachusetts Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs Rick Sullivan,
Department of Fish and Game (DFG) Commissioner Mary Griffin and state wildlife
officials on an expedition to document the newest members of the Commonwealth’s
black bear population.
The team discovered two cubs born approximately four to six weeks
ago. The cubs, both male, weighed in at approximately six pounds. Based on last
year’s breeding status, the Conway bear is one of 16 radio-collared sows
believed to have given birth this winter.
While newborn cubs are too small to tag or collar, MassWildlife
records each cub’s physical condition, weight and gender. Biologists also check
the physical condition of mother bears, as well as the condition and fit of
their radio collars.
Information gathered at the den in Conway today adds to that compiled
through one of longest, continuous studies of black bears in the United States.
DFG’s Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MassWildlife) began the study with the
Massachusetts Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit at the University of
Massachusetts in Amherst in 1970.
MassWildlife has been solely responsible for the project since 1999
and is currently examining reproductive success, cub survival, adult female
survival and human-bear interactions. Numbering only about 100 bears when the
study began, the Massachusetts black bear population has grown to approximately
3,000 today.
Although black bears are becoming more common in central
Massachusetts and are occasionally sighted in eastern communities, most of
MassWildlife’s bear research takes place west of the Connecticut River. With the
aid of radio telemetry, MassWildlife is currently tracking 16 female bears, also
known as sows, to determine adult female survival and cub production and
survival – key components of the Division’s black bear population model.
MassWildlife does not collar male bears, but ear-tags them to provide future
knowledge about survival and movement.
Contrary to popular belief, black bears don’t go into true
hibernation in winter. Rather, they sleep soundly in their dens from November or
December until early March to mid-April, but may wake up to forage in mild
weather.
Black bears are found in 43 states. Those in Massachusetts average
230 pounds for males and 140 pounds for females. They are omnivores – eating a
variety of foods from vegetation and berries to grubs, insects and carrion – and
are excellent climbers, frequently using trees to rest and to protect their
young. Black bears mate between mid-June and mid-July and cubs are born in mid-
to late-January. Cubs remain in the den until April and stay with their mother
for about 17 months. Females typically have their first litter when they are 3-4
years old.
