Elsewhere, bears turn again to greenery or roots, which often persists near water. They also wander widely looking for gut piles and wounded animals left by hunters. Black and grizzly bears retire to their winter dens in November and December, when snow begins to accumulate, or, in coastal areas, when winter rains begin in earnest. In fact, many urban bears are forgoing hibernation as they learn that people provide good winter forage — such as birdseed, pet food and garbage.
During the denning period, bears do not usually eat or drink, though some bears have been observed leaving their winter dens and feeding on winter-killed animals. Do not feed bears! Conditioning bears to human food sources will eventually lead to trouble and often the death of the bear. In This Section. But it is also important in jurisdictions where baiting is legal since the variety, abundance and quality of natural foods one year to the next often determines bear activity and visitation frequency at bait stations.
Natural foods are always preferred over baits offered by outfitters and guides and during peak soft and hard mast years it is not uncommon for bears to visit bait stations less often, at odd times and irregular intervals and for shorter periods if all. The opposite is generally true during low production years.
When natural foods are scarce bears typically hit bait more often, oftren on a regular schedule and in general bait stations are far more active. By the same token, in a number of states studies have consistently shown during years when fall foods are plentiful bears remain outside the dens longer increasing hunting opportunity. During low production years bears often enter dens early making hunting more difficult.
In all cases and with all said and done the availability and abundance of natural foods in a given area plays an important roll in hunting bears. The challenge in learning these foods is bears will take advantage of just about anything edible.
There are literally hundreds of various types of vegetation, soft and hard mast and other foods on both sides of the Continental Divide from Alaska and western Canada to Arizona and New Mexico bears will consume. Bear hunting seasons take place in the spring and fall and foods available during these periods are the ones to concentrate on.
Also, keep in mind bears utilize the most nutritious foods first. In the spring, this generally means tender young forbs and other broadleaf plants to provide calories and meat for much needed protein. In late summer and fall it means various berries, fruits and nuts and meat when available. Concentrating on these, learn to recognize them, when they are available in a given area and where to find them should do the trick, or at least provide a good head start.
Keep in mind, bears have about seven months to fill their nutritional needs for the entire year and they will move to high or low elevations and across great landscapes to find the foods they need. As a consequence, hunting strategies and locations often have to change to where the most abundant foods are available.
The various foods mentioned and listed here are generally considered primary foods in the west, but not all are available in all locations. Blueberries and huckleberry, for example are primarily found on the west side of the divide and cactus fruits primarily in the southwest. Other foods are more widespread.
These include fruits of various currants, wild sarsaparilla, dogwoods, strawberries, raspberries, pin and chokecherries, blueberries, and bristly sarsaparilla. Food Availability Items eaten in spring are generally predictable in timing of availability and do not vary greatly in abundance from one year to another. Nevertheless, many bears lose weight while feeding on these foods. At best, bears will maintain their weight in the spring. Summer and fall food items vary greatly in timing of availability and in abundance from one year to another.
For example, blueberries can vary from less than 10 kg per hectare to more than kg per hectare. Bears can double their body weight in years when fruits are abundant. It is the abundance of summer and fall foods that has the greatest effect on survival and on the proportion of adult females that reproduce successfully.
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