MONTPELIER, Vt. (WCAX) – Vermont\u2019s black bear population is growing, and biologists have launched a new study to find out why.<\/p>\n
As black bears wake from hibernation this spring, there\u2019s a growing chance Vermonters will encounter them throughout the season.<\/p>\n
Vermont Fish and Wildlife bear biologist Nicole Dickan says they know the black bear population is increasing, but the question is why. \u201cThere\u2019s increased human-bear conflict, road collision mortalities, increased harvest rates, and we really want to understand: what\u2019s the mechanism driving this increase?\u201d Dickan said.<\/p>\n
Dickan is helping head a new study looking specifically at black bear reproduction and if this bear boom starts with the babies. \u201cAre they having more cubs? Are these cubs having a higher survival rate? Is it a combination of those?\u201d Dickan said.<\/p>\n
They\u2019re also looking into how food availability may be playing into it, with more bears moving from the Green Mountains into the Connecticut River Valley, where there\u2019s a wider variety of food available. \u201cWe know that food availability can affect their reproductive output, so we just want to look at that as well and see how those factors are coming together,\u201d Dickan said.<\/p>\n
It started last summer with crews getting GPS collars on 19 adult females. Then, using those trackers, Dickan went into the dens as the females were hibernating with their new babies and tranquilized them. \u201cMy number one priority is her safety, making sure she\u2019s stable under the drugs,\u201d Dickan said.<\/p>\n
The cubs were then pulled out and examined. The crews noted things like weight, health indicators, and sex ratio. \u201cWe try to minimize disturbance as much as possible, do things efficiently, do things really quiet and calm,\u201d Dickan said.<\/p>\n
Using the information they gather with every den, Dickan says they can better predict how the bear population is growing, so people can be well-informed.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s at a point now where if you live in Vermont, you live in bear country. It\u2019s our responsibility to promote co-existence and make sure that we\u2019re sharing the landscape well with these animals,\u201d Dickan said.<\/p>\n
The study is expected to last four to six years.<\/p>\n
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