14 Comments

We were able to photograph and enjoy two different black bear mamas with coy last October. One was near the Blacktail Plateau Drive, don’t remember the other. They grazed on hillsides and were fun to watch, especially the cubs. I enjoy learning from you, especially about the short faced bear! We spent a few days on Lake Superior in the Michigan UP recently. There had recently been black bear sightings but we didn’t spot any. Always a thrill to think maybe… long live the bear!

Expand full comment

Hi Jan. I'm glad you enjoy learning about wildlife. I do too and I also enjoy writing about what I learn. I'm glad you had two bear sightings and I agree that black bears--especially cubs--are fun to watch. Those cubs sure do explore their world, don't they?

Expand full comment

Thanks for another informative post, Rick! The Coast Range is crawling with black bears, and yet I rarely see them. I suspect they are wilier than we suspect, and this also aids in their remarkable ability to coexist with humans.

Expand full comment

Hey, Tom, I'm glad you enjoyed the post. My experience with Coast Range black bears was similar to yours. They were there but I never saw them. I sure enjoy spending moments with them now.

Expand full comment

Thanks for another interesting post, Rick. Couldn't get along without 'em!

Rus

Expand full comment

I'm glad you enjoy them!

Expand full comment

Thank you for the comprehensive look at the Black Bear. The short-faced bear I hadn't heard of...pretty scary. I live in the Pasadena, CA, area where housing has been built too far into the foothills. Black bears are sometimes found in people's backyard swimming pools. And sad that our state flag's symbol, the Grizzly Bear, no longer exists here.

Expand full comment

Thanks, Patricia, for adding to this look at black bears. I too find it sad that we humans continue to infringe on the ranges of so many wild animals. Luckily the black bear has found a way to coexist with us. I wish we could find a way to coexist with the grizzly which is missing in so many places.

Expand full comment

Truly appreciate all the research you do.

Expand full comment

Thanks, Sharon. I'm glad you appreciate. I sure enjoy learning about wildlife and wild lands.

Expand full comment

This was a very interesting article. I have 2 of your books and truly enjoy your writing. Thank you.

Expand full comment

Thanks for your support, Sharon. I truly appreciate it.

Expand full comment

I live in the Willamette Valley, between the Coast and Cascade Ranges. The week before the devastating floods in Yellowstone and Montana, I was visiting my son and daughter-in-law, Helena, in Gardiner. I met you at a site where we were fortunate to see an alpha female and her young cub nursing. Two days later we watched 7 wolves feeding off a fresh kill and then defending it against a black bear. Three wolves chased the bear away and up a tree. We watched repeated attempts by the bear to head towards the carcass, before finally heading out of sight. What a thrill that was.

My heart aches for the folks of Yellowstone and the town of Gardiner, Silver Gate, and several others initially hit by the floods and the disrupted tourist season on which these towns survive. My thoughts are with you folks everyday.

Expand full comment

Thanks, Judy, for sharing that wonderful story about the interaction between wolves and a black bear. What a great sighting! Thanks, too, for your concern for us folks in Gardiner. I have been so impressed by how Yellowstone's superintendent, Cam Sholly, and one of our Park County Commissioners, Bill Berg, stepped up to take the lead in helping Gardiner recover.

Expand full comment