If you have a lot of dealings with black bears, invest in a big heavy walking stick. The idea is not to whack him over the head with it, but to use it as a prop. Initially, thump it hard against the ground. The heavy "whump" sound will make a big impression on any listening bear. If necessary, you can wave it on high impressively, whack nearby objects with it, and if a bear tries charging, whump it on the ground before him and poke him in the snout with it. If all else fails, you can drop the club and quietly back off while he investigates it. Rubbing it with a little valerian will make it smell particularly intriguing. This stick technique (a large broom will do fine) is a good one if you have a bear in the house or trying to break in, or you just want to shoo him off a porch. If you REALLY want to keep bears away from your cabin in the woods, a good sling shot is an effective method, but just remember that bears have a long memory for such insults and are apt to hold a grudge against you for it.
It helps to know some common vocalisations. Huffing, puffing, blowing sounds and tooth clacking are "Go Away!" signals. Sometimes it just indicates alarm. A deep, drawn out rather musical moan indicates distress or fear, sometimes pain. A rough Uh-huh-huh-huh-huh-huh-huh! sound indicates a strong threat, "Your really asking for it Bub!" Cubs squeal and grumble to themselves a lot. If they start screaming (very like a human child), this indicates distress and mama bear will come running. (Poachers often imitate this sound to illegally take females with cubs; report any suspicious character you catch doing this.) When cubs are nursing, they make an indescribably weird humming noise that sounds like it came from another planet. Adult bears sometimes make a deeper version of this sound if they feel especially contented or comfortable. Black bears seldom growl or roar, but watch out if you hear this, you have a really angry bear. Good sound files can be found on the bear.org and discovery.com web sites.
Finally, please remember that this advice is only for wild black bears and only in the United States. If you are dealing with black bears in Northern or Western Canada or anywhere in Alaska, you must be much more conservative and cautious. They are significantly more aggressive and dangerous and can show behavioral patterns you really don't see south of the border. I will deal on that subject in my article on Bear Safety. Also, don't try this with grizzlies unless you are dealing with very small yearling bears. (See next article.) Don't try this with a zoo bear; they are often significantly more dangerous than wild bears.
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