Louisiana black bear's have roughly doubled their population since 2006 from 600 to roughly 1000 Bruins......This subspecies of Black Bear is on the Endangered Species list and the BLACK BEAR CONSERVATION COALITION has worked hard with private landowners to create viable habitat and corridors for the Bears to spread out and multiply

Coalition helps black bear numbers creep up

 

 

The Louisiana black bear, which is on the U.S. Endangered Species List and classified as threatened in Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, is making a comeback of sorts, albeit a slow one.

Thanks to the untiring work of the Black Bear Conservation Coalition, private landowners, wildlife professionals and timber companies, the bear's numbers have been creeping upward -- a victory for conservation.

In 2006, Louisiana's black bear population was estimated at only 400 to 500. Today, rough estimates put the bear's population at between 600 to 1,000 bears -- a significant increase.
Three different projects are ongoing in the state to try to give an accurate count.

"It is hard to accurately count the number of bears because they are so shy," BBCC Executive Director Paul Davidson said. "They shun human contact; stay mainly to themselves in the woodlands, and rarely attack livestock. That being said, I still believe we have more bears today than we did 100 years ago."

Davidson attributes the rebound to an aggressive campaign of planting of hardwood trees on more than 350,000 acres of Mississippi River lowlands in Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas, and the partnership the BBCC, land companies and private landowners have been able to forge during the last 21 years.

"The bear has become an asset to the average landowner," Davidson said.
While the population survives primarily along the Tensas (Tensas National Forest and Madison Parish) and Atchafalaya River Basins, the bear's growing numbers have led to increased sightings in east central Louisiana, especially among deer hunters.

"As the population grows, the bear is expanding its area," Davidson said. "They can easily walk 20 to 25 miles to get something to eat. And with more and more viable habitat -- Dewey Wills Wildlife Management Area comes to mind -- coming into play, the bear is starting to show up in locales they are not usually seen."

Davidson, though, is quick to point out that maintaining a "viable habitat" is not only beneficial to the bear, but to other species as well."Many people may not realize this, but a bear's habitat is a valuable asset to many other species -- 200 to be exact," Davidson said. "All benefit, when there is adequate habitat that includes plenty of good hardwood trees, food and water."

Thanks to a sizable grant from the Walton Family Foundation, there is an effort to restore habitat in Pointe Coupee Parish. The restoration project is planting different types of hardwoods, which, when mature, will provide not only prime habitat, but food for the bear and other species of wildlife.
While Davidson sees progress, there is a need for much more work to be done. This can only be accomplished through dedication, education and cooperation -- and money.

To learn more about Louisiana's Black Bear got to www.bbcc.org