Like all area home owners, I wanted to get the grass under control before hurricane Katrina drenches us with rain. So right after church, I started mowing the yard. Things were pretty uneventful until I got to the front yard.
I think Glenda was expecting something different when I rang the door bell with a small shovel in my hand and asked her to bring me the camera. I had found some Black Bear scat (droppings) in our front yard about fifteen feet from our front door.
The red "X" in the picture marks the area where I found the bear scat. When I first saw it I thought someone had gotten a really big dog, but on closer examination, I had no doubt that it was bear scat. I could see seeds and other characteristic items.
We have lived at the top of Fairway View Trail for almost sixteen years without bear incidents until last year. There has always been a large tract of woods across the road from us. We've known there was at least a bear or two in there since we started walking the trails in the woods many years ago when our late Labrador, Chester, was very young.
In fact back when we were serious about black berries we used to have a little race with the bears each year. We would pick our first crop of berries and often find that the bears had beat us to the second picking and sometimes even gotten the first berries in some more remote areas. There were plenty of berries for both of us, so we didn't let it worry us. We only visited their areas irregularly and if they came to see us, we saw no signs of it.
I had a fair amount of experience with black bears on the farm in Canada. In fact once, I had a scary experience checking the herd in one of our more remote pastures. My normal practice once I found the cattle was to get out of my four wheel drive pickup and retrieve a pail of grain from the back of the truck and then call the cattle. They always would come running for a taste of grain.
This particular time, the cattle ran right on by the pickup. I happened to notice that what I had thought was one of our larger black calves running behind the herd was actually a black bear coming towards me at full steam. The bear didn't turn until I got in the pickup and came after him. Even though I got up to thirty five miles an hour flying across the bumpy pasture I couldn't catch the black bear in the less than one half mile distance.
When I got home, I called the ranger, he told me shoot the bear on sight since it had obviously lost its fear of humans. For a couple of weeks, I kept in the pickup the Remington 30-06 semi-automatic rifle that I had in those days , but fortunately I never saw the bear again. We would often see signs of bears, but in over ten years with an average of sixty calves a year in an area polluted with bears, we never had a problem. Some farmers who grew oats for grain had a lot of trouble. The bears could destroy acres of grain in a single night. I guess a field of oats was easier prey that a running calf.
Bears are normally very nocturnal. Using my best crime scene investigation techniques, I suspect our visitor came very early this morning. Last year our next door neighbor had his garage door ripped off by a black bear that proceeded to raid his garage refrigerator for the cookie dough and butter that were stored there. It also was last year that our neighbors on the other side of our house started having problems with raccoons and their bird feeders. Though a number were trapped and moved away, we now take our bird feeders in at night since the raccoons seems to be on the watch for them.
It was last fall that the over 100 acre tract of land just across the road from us sold, and someone decided to punch a road in there and put a home up on top of the mountain near where we used to race the bears for the black berries. I believe our bear visitor and the new construction are direct related. I guess it should come as no surprise that the bear has been pushed from his home.
Also I'm sure the left over lunches from the construction people have helped to remove the fear of humans. It ends up being a dangerous situation. Last year when our neighbor called about the problem bear, he was told that there was nothing that could be done. I guess we'll just have to be careful, but at some point a bear which may have lost its fear of humans can be a real danger. If Roanoke county is going to approve huge houses in the middle of wild tracks of land, they may have to use part of those taxes that they are so fond of collecting to hire some experienced people to make sure no one including the bears get hurt. Unfortunately I left my rifle in Canada when we moved, so I'll have to depend on the county.
Since I could only find a picture of bear scat that was three months old on the web, I decided to post my picture of fresh black bear scat on the web. For those who have spent considerable years shoveling manure, the picture that I have posted is no big deal. If, however, you have spent your life in the city with little contact from animals and their by products, this very graphic picture may offend your sensibilities. So be warned. Here is the link to the fresh black bear scat.
First, your house is very beautiful! Second: What exciting bear's story!
Posted by: Sonia | August 29, 2005 at 11:22 PM