Black 



bears are a 

 secretive bunch. 

 You might see a 

 wild bear crossing 

 the road or 

 raiding a trash 

 can. But usually 

 they like to keep 

 to the thickets and 

 blend in with the 

 shadows. In fact, 

 hidden among 

 North Carolina's 

 coastal forests 

 and pocosins 

 is the largest 

 concentration of 

 American black 

 bears in the state. 



Coastal 

 North Carolina 

 is good bear 

 country, says 

 Mark Megalos, 



an N.C. State University extension 

 forestry specialist. Several thousand 

 acres of eastern North Carolina are 

 generally left untouched by humans, 

 giving bears access to the water, 

 trees, berries, plants and nuts they 

 need to survive. Dare County's 

 Alligator River National Wildlife 

 Refuge, managed by the U.S. Fish 

 and Wildlife Service, has more than 

 120,000 acres of pocosin strictly for 

 wildlife. Although not particularly 

 hospitable to people, the refuge makes 

 fine habitat for black bears. Coastal 

 lumber companies own large expanses 



The Bare Facts about 



Coastal 

 Black Bears 



By Rachel Wharton • Illustrations by Anne Marshall Runyon 



of mature timberland to which they 

 restrict human — but not bear — 

 access. And black bears have a new 

 protected coastal homesite. N.C. State 

 University recently acquired 5,500 

 acres along the Albemarle Sound, 

 called the Bull Neck Swamp Research 

 Forest, which will be used for envi- 

 ronmental research. 



Bears can also benefit from 

 coastal agriculture; they feast on corn 

 and winter wheat — even watermel- 

 ons. Although large amounts of crops 

 eaten by deer and bears can make 

 farmers angry, some are "tickled to 



death to see 

 bears around," 

 says Gordon 

 Warburton, 

 the black bear 

 project leader for 

 the N.C. Wildlife 

 Resources 

 Commission. 

 Like many who 

 appreciate 

 wildlife, these 

 farmers enjoy 

 seeing a bear in 

 its natural 

 environment. 



But during 

 the early part 

 of the century, 

 black bears 

 were often 

 considered a 

 nuisance. Land 

 was being 

 cleared; timber 

 was being cut. There were no hunting 

 seasons or regulations. Bears were 

 shot for meat and sport. Black bear 

 populations dwindled. Because little 

 data was collected on these reclusive 

 animals until recent decades, scientists 

 aren't sure how much bear populations 

 decreased. 



But during the past 15 to 20 years 

 — due in part to hunting rules, state 

 and federal parks, bear sanctuaries 

 and better habitat management — 

 American black bears have been 

 rebounding. In 1971, there were 1.6 

 million acres of bear range in coastal 



22 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 1996 



