Make the Bears Afraid of You - Don't Be Afraid of the Bears!

by Lisa Wallace, Executive Director

This morning I heard Anne Bryant, co-founder of the Bear League, talk about the importance of bears in our ecosystems and the importance of living with bears. Anne exploded three myths:

Myth 1: Bears are demons and agressive.  Wrong. Black bears are fairly shy and will try to avoid confrontation. Give them an escape and they will take it.

Myth 2:  Grizzly bears live here. Wrong.  Black bears live in our region.  Grizzly bears are extinct here.  Black bears have not killed any humans in California or Nevada.

Myth 3: Bears will take over a neighborhood.  Wrong.  Black bears are searching for food.  If the food sources are removed, the bears will leave.

Learn more about helping bears survive in the wild so that they can contribute to our forests, meadows, creeks and streams.