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Animal Sciences Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Zoology

Utah State University

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Ursus americanus

Publication Year

Articles 1 - 5 of 5

Full-Text Articles in Animal Sciences

Bear-Caused Human Fatalities In Yellowstone National Park: Characteristics And Trends, Kerry A. Gunther Jan 2022

Bear-Caused Human Fatalities In Yellowstone National Park: Characteristics And Trends, Kerry A. Gunther

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Three fatal bear (Ursus spp.) attacks in Yellowstone National Park (YNP), USA, from 2011 to 2015 were a catalyst for YNP managers to evaluate the circumstances of bear-caused fatalities as well as the bear safety messages it distributes to park visitors. I reviewed records of all fatal bear attacks that occurred in YNP from 1872 to 2018. Seven of the 8 fatalities were caused by grizzly bears (U. arctos horribilis). The per capita risk of being killed by a grizzly bear was 1 fatality for every 26.2 million park visits. Most fatal bear attacks in YNP involved …


Predicting Black Bear Activity At Backcountry Campsites In Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah, Wesley G. Larson, Tom Smith Jan 2019

Predicting Black Bear Activity At Backcountry Campsites In Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah, Wesley G. Larson, Tom Smith

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Developing the capacity to predict black bear (Ursus americanus; bear) activity in a diversity of habitats will help conserve bear populations and their habitats and minimize human–bear conflicts. This capacity will be particularly important in areas that provide bear habitat and offer backcountry hiking and camping experiences. Bryce Canyon National Park (BRCA), located on the edge of the Paunsaugunt Plateau in southern Utah, USA, provides important bear habitat and offers visitors 12 backcountry campsites. To effectively manage these areas to minimize human–bear conflicts, park managers will need better information about black bear use of these campsites and other …


Portable Electric Fencing For Bear Deterrence And Conservation, Tom S. Smith, Bryan Hopkins, John Gookin, Samantha Thompson Jan 2018

Portable Electric Fencing For Bear Deterrence And Conservation, Tom S. Smith, Bryan Hopkins, John Gookin, Samantha Thompson

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Although bear-inflicted (Ursus spp.) human fatalities are rare in North America, human injuries, property damage, and bear mortalities occur wherever bears and humans commingle. We investigated the efficacy of portable electric fencing systems for bear deterrence under a variety of environmental conditions in the lab and field. Our results showed that the bear deterrent systems we evaluated were effective in protecting humans, their food, and property from bears >99% of the time. Herein, we discuss the benefits of using electric fencing, reasons why fences sometimes fail, and provide guidance regarding the most effective implementation of the systems we evaluated. …


Post-Release Activity And Habitat Selection Of Rehabilitated Black Bears, Patrick J. Myers, Julie K. Young Jan 2018

Post-Release Activity And Habitat Selection Of Rehabilitated Black Bears, Patrick J. Myers, Julie K. Young

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Despite the long history of wildlife rehabilitation and the abundance of empirical knowledge of the behavior and resource selection of wildlife species, rarely does research bridge these disciplines. Such investigations could be of value to wildlife managers and rehabilitators by revealing the suitability of the habitat at selected release sites, the wild activities, behavior, and fitness of the captive-reared individuals, and ultimately the efficacy of the rehabilitation process. Rehabilitated carnivores warrant specific attention, given that they are wide-ranging and may behave in ways that threaten human safety or interests. We investigated the behavior of orphan, rehabilitated black bear cubs ( …


Humans As Prey: Coping With Large Carnivore Attacks Using A Predator-Prey Interaction Perspective, Vincenzo Penteriani, Giulia Bombieri, José María Fedriani, José Vicente López-Bao, Pedro José Garrote, Luca Francesco Russo, María Del Mar Delgado Sep 2017

Humans As Prey: Coping With Large Carnivore Attacks Using A Predator-Prey Interaction Perspective, Vincenzo Penteriani, Giulia Bombieri, José María Fedriani, José Vicente López-Bao, Pedro José Garrote, Luca Francesco Russo, María Del Mar Delgado

Human–Wildlife Interactions

The number of attacks on humans by large carnivores in North America is increasing. A better understanding the factors triggering such attacks is critical to mitigating the risk of future encounters in landscape where humans and large carnivore co-exist. Since 1955, of the 632 attacks on humans by large carnivores, 106 (17%) involved predation. We draw on concepts and empirical evidence from the Predator-Prey Interaction Theory to provide insights into how to reduce predatory attacks and, thus, improve human-large carnivore co-existence. Because large carnivore-caused mortality risks for humans are comparable to those shown by other mammal species in response to …