ATLANTA — Summer is a great time for seeing bears, even if a visit to more traditional bear habitats — or the zoo — isn’t on the agenda.
But one way to avoid an unwanted visit from one of the 5,100 bears estimated to live in the Peach State: don’t feed the bears.
“Bears can become habituated to people when they are fed – whether intentional or not,” Adam Hammond, wildlife biologist with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ Wildlife Resources Division, said in a news release.
“When a bear knows it can get a ‘free meal,’ it will return again and again until eventually it loses its natural fear of humans,” Hammond added. “This is when the majority of human-bear conflicts occur and the bear is labeled a nuisance.”
Another way to avoid a visit from a bear is to store garbage in the garage if necessary and keep grills and bird feeders in areas bears can’t access, experts say.
In Georgia, bears are usually found in one of a few areas — the north Georgia mountains, around the Ocmulgee River in middle Georgia and in the Okefenokee Swamp in the southern part of the state.
Bears in Georgia
Black bears commonly are found in three areas of the state – the north Georgia mountains, the Ocmulgee River drainage system in central Georgia and the Okefenokee Swamp in the southeastern part of the state. However, black bears can and do range over larger areas; especially in early spring and late summer, when natural food sources are scarce. Young male bears are also known to disperse in an effort to establish their own territory.
Though the American black bear (Ursus americanus) is now considered the most common bear in North America and the only native bear found in Georgia, at one point the species was nearly eradicated from the state due to poaching and habitat loss. Yet, because of sound wildlife management practices Georgia’s current black bear population is healthy and thriving and estimated at approximately 5,100 bears statewide.
For more information regarding black bears, visit www.georgiawildlife.com, contact a WRD Game Management office or call (770) 918-6416. The public also can visit their local library to check out a copy of an informational DVD entitled, “Where Bears Belong: Black Bears in Georgia.”
— Georgia DNR
