Page 105 - South Mississippi Living - October, 2020

Native to the Magnolia State, black bears became scarce in Mississippi well before Roosevelt’s hunt. As
the human population grew, bear habitat disappeared. Also, many people tried to exterminate the
occurs in the lower two-thirds
of the state,” Rummel advises. “American black bear live in
the upper one-third. The bear population is naturally recolonizing into parts of Mississippi, primarily
“Females typically establish a home range very near or overlapping
their mother’s home range.
Males, however, may wander over hundreds of miles for a couple years as they search for their own home range.”
When bears wander, they could come into con ict with humans. Fortunately, Mississippi has never su ered a documented bear attack. Typically shy, most bears tend to avoid people. However, a mother bear with cubs can pose a serious threat to anyone in her territory. With sharp claws and teeth, a black bear can weigh several hundred pounds and stand seven feet tall on its hind legs.
Most human-bear encounters involve bears looking for food. Bears eat just about anything. The large, extremely strong animals can
large, powerful predatory beasts, believing they posed a threat to themselves and their livestock.
Mississippi closed its bear hunting season in 1932. In 2002, the state estimated that about
50 bears lived in the state. Since then, the population bloomed as more females wandered into Mississippi from neighboring states.
“WHEN CROSSING PATHS WITH A BEAR, LET IT KNOW YOU’RE THERE, BUT OTHERWISE LEAVE IT ALONE.”
from Louisiana and Arkansas. Restoration of habitat is occurring in the form of reforestation and conversion of marginal agricultural land into planted trees.”
Bears need sizable tracts of unbroken habitat. In Mississippi, a female black bear could roam over 3,000 to 5,000 acres. Males
“We estimate the Mississippi
bear population at about 200,” reports Richard Rummel, the top bear biologist for the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks. “Bears primarily live along the Mississippi River and
in southwestern Mississippi.
There’s a smaller population in southeast Mississippi including
the three coastal counties. In
recent years, we’ve seen increasing documentation of bears moving into central and north-central Mississippi as well as expanding northward from the coastal population.” At least two subspecies of black bear live in Mississippi, possibly three. The Louisiana black bear once ranged from eastern Texas to about the Mississippi-Alabama line. The Florida subspecies occurs as
far west as southwestern Alabama near Mobile. Some of those bears possibly crossed into extreme southeastern Mississippi. “The Louisiana black bear
generally require about three to four times that acreage. In addition, young males wander long distances
looking for territory they can call their own and receptive females.
“Most bear movement is by
adult males during the breeding season when they are searching for potential mates,” Rummel explains.
The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks Black Bear Program conducts research and educates the people of Mississippi about our black bears.
destroy practically anything they believe holds food. When bears begin to associate humans with food, trouble follows. When crossing paths with a bear, let it know you’re there, but otherwise leave it alone.
For more on Mississippi bears, see www.mdwfp.com/wildlife-hunting/black-bear-program.
SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living | www.smliving.net October 2020 | 105