Communicating With Bears: Black Bears - Page 2© Gerald Eugene Smith
Page 2
Mar 9, 1999
Sometimes a black bear will approach you out of curiousity. He will gaze at you very intently and look apprehensive. His approach will be cautious and slow. If you don't mind being approached, use the signals I have suggested above. If the bear comes right up to you, he will sniff you over, and any equipment that you have. If he sits down next to you to have a good look, you sit down too and sweet-talk him. Look out of the side of your eyes, or, if you look directly at him, soften your gaze by squinching a little like you are sleepy. Bears are keenly aware of the power of eyes and may "talk" to you the same way. A friendly bear can have very warm and beautiful eyes. If you are unafraid yourself, or can hide it well, and you reassure the bear of your peaceful intentions, you may well gain a friend. Whenever you are in the neighborhood, your new friend will come up to greet you and probably walk beside you a while. Don't do this if you are in a heavily hunted area, or your kindness could doom the bear by making him too incautious. On the other hand, if you don't want to be approached by a bear, or don't want to encourage a nice bear in the dangerous habit of approaching humans, use bear signals to tell him to keep his distance. Glare directly into his eyes, frowning strongly. Yell with the mouth wide open and pretend to lunge at him with your hands curved to look like claws. Pick up twigs and break them, or pick up a stick and thrash any nearby object with it. Make blowing noises or just cuss him out. Sound MENACING! If the bear really is an intimidating sort, jump up and down shrieking and do your best "enraged ape" routine, especially if the bear approaches. Try rushing the bear and throwing gravel or small rocks at his feet, or banging a stick on the ground in front of you. If he still treats your attempts at intimidation with the contempt they truly deserve, just squat grimly in his way but let him approach you without further fuss. The worst that will happen is you will get sniffed over pretty well. More likely, the bear will stop short a few feet and just look you over thoroughly. Let him be the first to leave and then back away cautiously.
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Hi, Shutterbug!You did the right thing! You had obviously inconvenienced a really dominant bear, one of the lords of the forest. By staring you directly in the eye like that after making typical ...
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I have been reading about and studying black bears in Virginia for years.Let me start out by saying that all i have read here is both truthful and informative. I have simply always stomped my foot to ...
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Hi Connie!
Bears make a lot of similar sounds, but there are some differences. Black bears are quiter than grizzly bears, which tend to be the noisiest. Black bears are apt to go Woof! as a mark o ...
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Hi JerryBear,The article I read did refer to the grizzly but obviously this person has never heard first hand the sound a grizzly makes. That was the only time I'd heard a grizzly roar and black b ...
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Hi Connie!
I think your sources were referring to black bears, which seldom growl or roar. Grizzlies do it a lot! They can also make an appalling noise that sounds just like a person in the la ...
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