Thread by @grizzlygirl87

It's time to reveal this week's #KnockKnockWhosBear! This photo is of a...
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... #BlackBear!

https://twitter.com/grizzlygirl87/status/1153726786900901888

Perhaps the most obvious characteristic here is the color of the coat. This bear is black! But that doesn't necessarily mean that it is a black bear. There are dark/black brown bears as well. In this case, it's a good indicator, but let's look a little bit more at this bear.

There is no noticeable hump between the shoulders of this bear, which suggests that it is NOT a brown bear. There appears to be some sort of bump along the neck, but I believe that is from the spine and not so much a muscle mass between the shoulders.

The ears are a bit difficult to see as they are almost flattened along the back of the skull. But if you can zoom in on the photo with a little clarity, you might see that the ears are still rather large and oblong shaped, rather than small/round.

Rump end of this bear is just a touch higher than the shoulders in the front - also suggesting black bear. And if you look closely, there appears to be two-toning in the face. The snout looks brown to me, while the rest of the bear is black...a rather common for black black bears

And lastly, you could draw a nice straight line from between the ears on the top of the head all the way down to the tip of the long, slender snout. Definitely a black bear!

This is one of 8 or 9 bears that I saw while we were in Jasper a couple weeks ago, and almost every bear I saw was put into a bad situation by people. So I want to talk a little bit about bear encounters, bear jams, and appropriate behavior around bears should you encounter one.

This particular bear actually walked down the hill behind it in the photo into the campground where we were staying...it was literally feet away from the playground. Luckily, no one really bothered this bear. I got my photos with a 500mm zoom lens from inside our RV.

A few people stepped out of their trailers/campers to get photos, but no one approached, and everyone was careful to give the bear plenty of space. He or she hung out for a while, looking for dandelions and other yummy things to eat.

At one point, a child on a bike entered the playground, not seeing the bear or knowing that it was there. But when he DID notice the bear poking around, he quickly hopped back on his bike & took off, leaving the bear undisturbed. This was maybe around 5pm. The middle of the day.

This is why it is imperative that you keep a clean camp in these areas. There were also grizzly warning signs on the bathroom doors saying that grizzlies had been entering the campgrounds too. Any sort of attractant left out at a campsite could have altered this encounter.

But this was probably the most well-handled bear encounter I witnessed. No one rushing the bear for photos. No one approaching. No one feeding it. The bear was just foraging naturally, not bothered by the people who were plenty far away, not attracted further into camp.

Every other bear I saw, was along the side of the road or in the road, and there were people parked, out of their vehicles, wandering off into the foliage, approaching, cameras in hand, children with them, or literally just STOPPED in the middle of the road blocking traffic.

I get it...a lot of people go to places like Jasper to see wildlife. I like to see wildlife too. But...if you ever encounter a situation like this (called a bear jam), please DO NOT contribute to it. If you want to see the animal, fine. But there are certain rules/guidelines.

Yes, slow down so that if the animal runs into the road, you're not in danger of hitting it (or the people who are inevitably out of their cars). If you are SAFELY able to do so, you can pull over out of the road. Do not block traffic. Do not stop in the middle. Do not swerve.

Don't cut people off. Safely pull over. Next step...DO NOT get out of your vehicle. The second you step out of your vehicle, you are putting yourself and that animal at risk. In most circumstances, I wouldn't even advise rolling your window down, considering how close you are.

Trust me, if a bear feels threatened by you hanging out your car window or walking at it from outside of your vehicle, and it chooses to respond defensively...you will NOT be able to get back to your car or roll your window up fast enough.

Leave it alone. Do not approach. In most cases, you can see the animal without rolling your window down. Be quiet. Don't yell at it or make noises or try to call it to you. BE RESPECTFUL.

And certainly do not attempt to feed it. Don't try to get close enough for a selfie. You're not at a zoo (many of these behaviors aren't acceptable at zoos either) - there are no safety fences. These are wild animals, and you are being disrespectful by invading its space.

All of these behaviors count as wildlife harassment. Just. Don't. Do. It.

But fine, you've safely pulled over. You haven't gotten out of your car or rolled your window down (probably). Now...and this is the most difficult part for some people...

Take your photos and move on. Quickly. Millions of people go to parks like this to see wildlife. Bear jams happen because the first few people who spot the animal STAY THERE. And the next thing you know, there's a line of cars on the road and no one can see anything.

And that's why people start hopping out of their cars. So they can see.

I know it's exciting to watch animals do their thing, especially bears...because, they are SO COOL, right? But just stay long enough to take some photos safely, and then leave so someone else can enjoy.

Make sure you aren't participating in wildlife harassment. Make sure you're not putting yourself, others, or the animal at risk. Make sure that the situation is as safe as it can be for everyone involved. It's so awesome to see bears in the wild.

But it's not cool to have that experience ruined by people who aren't considerate. I love bears, and I love to see them. But seeing other people see bears makes me super anxious simply because people don't know how to act around wildlife. Someone is going to get hurt.

Bears tolerate a LOT from humans. But I would be devastated to find out that a bear was hit by a car (I saw this almost happen right in front of me), or that a bear was destroyed because people got too close & it reacted, especially in a situation that I had participated in.

Park regulations state that you should be no closer than 100 meters/300 feet from any bear (about a football field's length).

I've seen people approach to within MAYBE 20 feet. That is not okay.

Bears are fast, and they can cover huge distances before you can react. And a bear that reacts defensively because you were doing something wrong will most likely pay the price.

https://twitter.com/carriganbw/status/1153780821632770049

On top of all this bad behavior going around in terms of wildlife viewing, I also heard several people on trails spreading misinformation as well.

For example: a man was telling other hikers they definitely didn't need to carry bear spray on any hike because there were too many people around.

Readers, a BEAR CAME INTO CAMP. Surrounded by people and RVs and cars and pets.

Not all bears are bothered by human presence. Plus, these are wildlife corridors and animals HAVE to move through them.

If you're hiking or recreating in bear country, you should have bear spray. Period. You should make noise on trails. You should travel in groups.

So I guess the main takeaways here are:

1) Don't harass any wildlife (not just bears, but elk and bighorn sheep and moose and bison, etc.).

2) Follow safety protocol (clean camps, stay in car, safe distances, etc.)

3) Be RESPECTFUL...of wildlife and other visitors

4) Remember that your choices affect more than just you

5) Don't contribute to bad situations like bear jams

6) Don't spread incorrect, unsafe information

Sorry to drone on about this kind of stuff, because I'm sure most of my followers already know and practice these types of things. But it's important stuff! And apparently, A LOT of people still aren't aware of how they should handle themselves.

It's very frustrating as a wildlife biologist to see the constant disrespect shown to these animals. They're just trying to do what they do, and survive, and when people are mobbing and harassing them, that becomes very difficult.

So yeah. Thanks for listening to me talk about bears, for spreading this information to your friends, for practicing safe wildlife viewing, and for playing #KnockKnockWhosBear with me this week.

Come back next Tuesday for another game (and probably way less lecturing)!