Georgia DNR Says Tis the Season to Be “Bear Wise”

It’s that time of year when black bears are coming out of hibernation and they are hungry.

Young males are searching for food and their own territories and female bears are foraging for food for themselves and their new cubs.

So it is important to make sure to make your property unattractive to black bears.

Scott Frazier is a wildlife biologist with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources in Gainesville.

Frazier says that’s why the Georgia Department of Natural Resources is encouraging everyone to be “Bear Wise” to keep black bears from becoming a nuisance on their property.

Here are some things you can do to prevent black bears from hanging around.

First, he said check your property to make sure there’s nothing on it that could attract a black bear.

To keep that from happening, Frazier said to remove or secure anything in your yard the bear might view as an easy meal.

Frazier pointed out there’s a difference between a bear sighting and an actual encounter with a bear.

If you see a bear in the wild, the best thing you can do is leave it alone and let it go its own way.

Black bears are not typically aggressive like, for example, a Grizzly. The one exception, however, is with bear cubs.

If you see bear cubs, it means a momma bear is nearby and she will attack if she thinks you are too close to her cubs.

Cubs are cute but you need to leave the area quickly and quietly and not attempt to get near them.

If you’re having trouble with a nuisance bear on your property, you should call the Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Services office in Gainesville at 706-546-5637.