I recently received a call from a person who had a bear walk through his camp at Lake Pillsbury. Another reader said a bear crossed Highway 20 in front of his vehicle last week near Clearlake Oaks. Both wanted to know how common bears are in Lake County and if they are dangerous.
Actually bears are very common throughout the county, but it”s unusual to see one because they generally shun people and mostly roam around during the night. In fact, many hunters hunt bears and the hunting season in southern Lake County is now open.
Bears are interesting animals. According to the Department of Fish and Game (DFG), there are approximately 30,000 to 40,000 bears statewide. All the wild bears in California are of the black bear species. There are no grizzlies in the state. Black bears range in color from totally black to a blond color. Many black bears have a white patch on their throat or chest. They also have five toes on each foot with long claws, which makes them excellent tree climbers. An adult black bear weighs from 150 to 350 pounds, although there have been recorded instances where an adult bear has weighed more than 600 pounds.
Black bears are “omnivores,” which means they will eat both plant and animal matter, including insects, nuts, berries and even decaying meat. They have such a good digestive system that they can eat rotting meat that would make many other animals sick.
Bears also kill and eat any animal they can catch. Rodents make up an important part of their diet. They also love ants and will break open rotting logs to get at the ants.
Black bears mate in June and July when the females are approximately 5 years old. The females often use what is called “delayed implantation” where the female will carry a fertilized egg in her womb for many months, the purpose being that if there is insufficient food for the female she won”t give birth to her cubs. A female produces from two to four cubs per litter. The young are born in February when the bear is hibernating and will weigh less than a pound at birth. The cubs stay with the mother for about two years before she drives them away.
During the winter, black bears hibernate. They aren”t considered true hibernators because they drift in and out of sleep. They select a tree hollow, cave or even an old brush pile and build a nest. During hibernation their body temperature stays at about 90 degrees (this is because of their thick fur coat and layers of fat. During the hibernation period they live off their fat. What is interesting is that bears have more than twice the cholesterol level of humans yet don”t suffer from hardening of the arteries or gall stones.
Black bears lose a lot of weight during hibernation — up to 40 percent of their body weight. They emerge from their dens in early April and are extremely hungry and will eat grasses and anything else they can find. They often visit local dumps for food.
The big question: Is a black bear dangerous? They are large animals and extremely strong. They are also very fast and can reach speeds of 30 mph for short distances. Attacks of black bears on humans are rare but they do occur and there have been people killed by bears. I have had many encounters with black bears but never have been threatened.
Normally when a black bear sees you it will run in the other direction. Fifteen years ago a deer hunter shot a black bear on Cow Mountain, located just outside of Lakeport, because he said the bear attacked him. The bear was mounted and is on display at the Clear Lake State Park Visitor”s Center.
Ten years ago I was turkey hunting near Lake Shasta and was sleeping on the ground around midnight when a large black bear came up and sniffed my cheek. Another hunter driving by saw the bear and chased it away. He said the bear”s nose was so close to my cheek that he thought it was licking me. As for myself, I never woke up.
According to the DFG, if you encounter an aggressive bear, wave your hands and shout at it. If it refuses to leave, then back away slowly and don”t run because it could trigger the bear into attacking. Bears show aggression by snapping their jaws. They will also walk toward you with their head lowered and look at you sideways.
The fear of a bear encounter has never kept me out of the woods. I consider them to be just another fascinating wild creature of Lake County.
