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May is “Be Bear Aware” Month and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) reminds the public to act responsibly when in bear country.
Spring is the time of year when California’s black bears emerge from their winter dens in search of food.
Because bears are attracted to anything edible or smelly, their search often leads them into campsites and residential neighborhoods, where trash and food is readily available.
There are an estimated 30,000 bears in California.
Throughout spring and summer, CDFW receives many calls when bears break into homes, rummage through trash bins and raid campsites.
These bears are often labeled “nuisance” bears, but in reality they are just doing what comes naturally to them, foraging for food.
“Human-bear conflicts are largely the fault of humans. People need to adjust their behavior when they live and recreate in bear country,” said Jesse Garcia, CDFW’s Bear Program Manager. “It is absolutely necessary to secure food and trash receptacles to avoid attracting bears. Campers and residents can prevent expensive property damage, safeguard people from injury and save the lives of bears by exercising a little common sense. Bears that become habituated to humans or conditioned to eating our food and trash often have to be killed.”
Tips for bear-proofing your home, rental or timeshare
Bears have keen noses and can smell an easy meal from miles away. They can easily tear a front door off its hinges if they smell food left out on the kitchen counter. The best defense against bear break-ins is not to attract them to your property by following these tips:
- Purchase and properly use a bear-proof garbage container.
- Wait to put trash out until the morning of collection day.
- Don’t leave trash, groceries or animal feed in your car.
- Keep garbage cans clean and deodorize them with bleach or ammonia.
- Keep barbecue grills clean and stored in a garage or shed when not in use.
- Only provide bird feeders during November through March and make them inaccessible to bears.
- Don’t leave any scented products outside, even non-food items such as suntan lotion, insect repellent, soap or candles.
- Keep doors and windows closed and locked.
- Consider installing motion-detector alarms, electric fencing or motion-activated sprinklers.
- Harvest fruit off trees as soon as it is ripe, and promptly collect fruit that falls.
- Securely block access to potential hibernation sites such as crawl spaces under decks and buildings.
Tips for bear-proofing your campsite
No one wants to worry about housekeeping on a camping trip, but maintaining a clean campsite is the responsible and safe thing to do when visiting black bear country.
Here are a few tips for bear-proofing your campsite:
- Use bear-proof garbage cans whenever possible or store your garbage in a secure location with your food.
- Store food (including pet food) and toiletries in bear-proof containers or in an airtight container in the trunk of your vehicle.
- Clean dishes and store food and garbage immediately after meals.
- Clean the barbecue grill after each use.
- Never keep food or toiletries in your tent.
Facts about black bears
- The only species of bears in California are black bears. However, they do range in color from blonde to black, with cinnamon brown being the most common color.
- There are an estimated 30,000 black bears in California.
- Black bears will seek to avoid confrontation with humans. If encountered, always leave them an escape route.
- Males are much larger than females and can weigh up to 500 pounds, although average weight is about 300 pounds.
- Black bears can sprint up to 35 mph and they are strong swimmers and great tree climbers.
- A typical wild bear diet consists of berries, plants, nuts, roots, honey, honeycomb, insects, larvae, carrion and small mammals.
- As winter approaches, bears will forage for food up to 20 hours a day, storing enough fat to sustain them through hibernation. Bears often hibernate in large hollow trees 40 to 60 feet off the ground.
- Bears that are accustomed to people can become too bold and lose their fear of humans.
For more information including bear-proof containers and where to buy them, please visit www.dfg.ca.gov/keepmewild/bear.html .
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NORTH COAST, Calif. – California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) officers contacted more than 650 abalone divers at a wildlife checkpoint operation north of Jenner on Sunday, May 18.
Checkpoints are an effective tool for wardens, who seek to promote safety, education and compliance with law and regulations through education, preventative patrol and enforcement.
All vehicles traveling south on Highway 1 in Sonoma County were screened at the checkpoint. Screening consisted of an introduction and brief questions.
Approximately 260 vehicles were directed into the inspection area.
Wildlife officers issued 31 citations and several dozen warnings.
Violations included overlimits of abalone, undersize abalone, report card violations and alterations, abalone not tagged, abalone meat out of the shell, short fish and several other Fish and Game Code violations.
One diver attempted to throw a tagged but undersized abalone into nearby bushes, but instead threw it into a warden’s truck bed. The loud clanking alerted officers to the attempt.
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The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) is reminding hunters that the deadline to apply for the 2014 Big Game Drawing is just weeks away.
Sales transactions must be completed before midnight on June 2, 2014. Applications for elk, antelope, bighorn sheep, premium deer tags and fundraising drawing tags may be submitted at any CDFW license agent, CDFW license sales office, by telephone sales or online.
All hunt tags for premium deer, elk, antelope and bighorn sheep are awarded through CDFW’s Big Game Drawing.
Successful applicants will receive a receipt to show their hunt choices have been entered in the drawing. CDFW expects the drawing results to be available online in mid-June. Hunters may also contact a CDFW license sales office to check the results.
The following resources are available to assist hunters.
- Proposed seasons, tag drawing application instructions and drawing statistics can be found in the 2014 California Big Game Hunting Digest. The book is available at www.dfg.ca.gov/publications/digest/ .
- To find a license agent near you or to purchase items online, please visit www.dfg.ca.gov/licensing/ols .
- To submit drawing applications by telephone, please contact the license sales line at (800) 565-1458.
Fund-raising drawing opportunities: CDFW’s random drawing fund-raising program includes tags for deer, elk and pronghorn antelope. This year the program will not include a bighorn sheep tag drawing.
The drawings for deer, elk and antelope are open to any resident or nonresident 12 years of age or older as of July 1, 2014. The cost to enter the drawings is $5.97 per entry, per hunt.
Applicants do not need a valid hunting license to apply, and may apply for the drawings as many times as they wish by June 2, 2014. Winners will be required to purchase an annual hunting license. However, the tag will be issued at no additional cost.
Open zone deer tag: An open zone deer tag allows the hunter to hunt during the authorized season dates of any hunt, using the specific method and meeting any special conditions of the tag for that hunt.
Multiple zone elk tag: The fundraising random drawing elk tag allows the hunter to hunt in any of the following zones – Northwestern, Northeastern, Marble Mountains, Siskiyou and La Panza. Hunters may use any legal method of take. All three subspecies of elk may be hunted, although only one elk may be harvested. The hunt dates open one week prior to the earliest season in that zone and run through the end of the regular season.
Northeastern California pronghorn antelope tag: The fundraising random drawing antelope tag allows the hunter to hunt in any of the Northeastern antelope zones (Mount Dome, Clear Lake, Likely Tables, Lassen, Big Valley and Surprise Valley) with any legal method. The hunt dates are from Aug. 2 to Sept. 21, 2014.
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NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) will hold a public workshop Tuesday, June 3, to discuss the implementation of the lead bullet ban.
The workshop will be held at the Humboldt Bay Aquatic Center at 921 Waterfront Drive in Eureka from 7 to 8:30 p.m.
A CDFW representative will detail a proposed implementation plan, the PowerPoint is available on the CDFW Web site, https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=77723&;inline=1 .
Following the short presentation, interested parties can make comments and provide input that will help shape CDFW’s final recommendation to the Fish and Game Commission, which CDFW anticipates presenting at the commission’s meeting in Sacramento in September.
Last year, Gov. Jerry Brown signed AB 711 requiring that the commission adopt a regulation to ban lead ammunition in the state no later than July 1, 2015, with full implementation of the ban to occur no later than July 1, 2019.
Gov. Brown has directed CDFW and the commission to work with all interested parties in order to produce a regulation that is least disruptive to the hunting community.
In order to determine what is least disruptive to hunters, CDFW has been reaching out to interested parties this year in a number of ways, including question and answer sessions at sportsmen’s shows, meetings with hunting organizations and now a series of public workshops throughout the state. A public workshop was held in Ventura in April.
After Eureka, planning is under way for workshops later this year, potentially in Redding, Sacramento, Fresno and San Diego.
In addition, individuals and organizations may email comments to
CDFW, Wildlife Branch
Attn: Non lead implementation
1812 9th Street
Sacramento, CA 95811