{"id":41857,"date":"2022-03-03T21:01:26","date_gmt":"2022-03-04T04:01:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/human-bear-conflicts-down-in-2021-in-southwest-colorado\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T03:03:54","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T09:03:54","slug":"human-bear-conflicts-down-in-2021-in-southwest-colorado","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/human-bear-conflicts-down-in-2021-in-southwest-colorado\/","title":{"rendered":"Human-bear conflicts down in 2021 in Southwest Colorado"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"A
A black bear scaled a tree in Durango\u2019s Buckley Park in September 2015. Southwest Colorado saw a 51.2% decrease in bear reports in 2021 compared with the average of the two previous years, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Strong forage and preventive measures such as bear-proof trash cans helped to minimize human-bear conflict, said John Livingston, spokesman for CPW\u2019s southwest region. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald file)<\/span>du1-i-syn<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

2021 was a quiet year for bears in Southwest Colorado.<\/p>\n

Colorado Parks and Wildlife released a recap of 2021 bear activity Monday showing a significant decline in human-bear conflict in Southwest Colorado and across much of the state. Wildlife officials attributed the decline to abundant food sources, but urged residents to continue taking precautions and to work more closely with CPW.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a great bear year largely because there was such great forage up in the high country,\u201d said John Livingston, spokesman for CPW\u2019s southwest region.<\/p>\n

The acorn, chokecherry and berry season was strong in Southwest Colorado, allowing bears to stay at higher elevations and away from urban areas, he said.<\/p>\n

In 2021, bear reports in Southwest Colorado were down 51.2% compared with the average of the two previous years, according to a CPW news release. The decrease was the largest in the state and nearly double the statewide figure.<\/p>\n

CPW received 3,701 reports of sightings and conflicts in Colorado last year, a 28% decrease from the previous two-year average. The agency\u2019s northeast and southeast regions also saw sizable reductions with bear reports down 38.2% and 39.8%, respectively.<\/p>\n

The one area that experienced an increase was northwest Colorado, which was hit by drought. CPW reported a modest 11.7% increase in the region from 2020 to 2021, but last year\u2019s 1,834 bear reports were still fewer than the more than 2,100 reported in 2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the biggest things that determines what level of bear activity we are going to see as far as human-bear conflicts is whether we get good monsoonal summer moisture,\u201d said Adrian Archuleta, CPW area wildlife manager in Durango, in a news release. \u201cThat is really critical in order to make the berries and acorns pop. In years where we get good moisture and the food mast (nuts or fruits from trees or shrubs) is readily available and abundant, we don\u2019t tend to have as much interactions and conflict. In years where it is very dry or we have a freeze event, a late frost, it can be very detrimental.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to CPW, grasses, berries, fruits, nuts and plants make up more than 90% of a bear\u2019s natural diet.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe always cross our fingers for no late freezes in late April or May,\u201d Livingston said. \u201cBears are really hungry when they first come out of hibernation and as long as they\u2019ve got good food up by where their dens are that\u2019s a really good situation. When you do run into a late freeze and they end up coming into town earlier, then we do see more of those conflicts.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"A
A Colorado Parks and Wildlife map shows bear activity in Colorado in 2021. In April 2019, CPW initiated a statewide tracking system for bear activity to help wildlife managers quantify bear activity and mitigate human-bear conflicts. Garbage, bird feeders, livestock, outdoor pet food and open garages can be sources of conflict, said John Livingston, spokesman for CPW\u2019s southwest region. (Courtesy of Colorado Parks and Wildlife)<\/span>cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

In addition to healthy forage in 2021, efforts in Durango and elsewhere in Southwest Colorado to expand bear-proof infrastructure also made a difference.<\/p>\n

\u201cReduction in conflicts can also be attributed to more bear-proof trash cans for residential users across the city of Durango over the last few years as well,\u201d Livingston said.<\/p>\n

In April 2019, CPW initiated a statewide tracking system for bear activity to help wildlife managers quantify bear activity and mitigate human-bear conflicts. Over the last few years, about one-third of all sightings and conflicts tracked by the agency have been linked to bears getting into garbage, a news release said.<\/p>\n

Bird feeders, livestock, outdoor pet food, open garages and other outdoor attractants are all sources of conflict, according to Livingston and CPW.<\/p>\n

CPW\u2019s most recent management plan for black bears in the San Juan Basin released in January 2013 estimated about 1,600 bears live in the area stretching from Durango east past Pagosa Springs and north from the Colorado-New Mexico border to Silverton.<\/p>\n

However, CPW Terrestrial Wildlife Biologist Brad Weinmeister warned in the plan that human-bear conflict could impact the population.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe most significant issue regarding bear management in the San Juan Basin relates to managing conflicts between bears and people,\u201d Weinmeister wrote. \u201cThe human population growth rate within (the area) exceeded the (sic) Colorado\u2019s average growth rate over the past 10 years, with significant human development occurring in prime bear habitat. As a result, it can be expected that the amount of human-bear interactions and human-bear conflicts will increase.\u201d<\/p>\n

Livingston said it is crucial for residents of Southwest Colorado to work closely with CPW to limit and mitigate conflicts.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe sooner we can try to correct behavior, the more beneficial it\u2019s going to be for a bear,\u201d he said. \u201cWe don\u2019t want to have a bear become a multi-time offender.\u201d<\/p>\n

Early notification can give wildlife managers time to haze bears, educate residents about potential attractants or relocate the bears before they become a risk to themselves and the community.<\/p>\n

CPW relocated 51 bears in Colorado in 2021 and 213 over the last three years, according to CPW figures.<\/p>\n

In a news release, Jason Clay, spokesman for CPW\u2019s northeast region, noted that members of the public have expressed a reluctance to report bear activity fearing bears will be euthanized.<\/p>\n

\"Steven
Steven Barkley, code enforcement officer for the city of Durango, watches a black bear in Durango in 2015. Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials are asking the public to more closely communicate with the agency about bears. Early notification can give wildlife managers time to haze bears, educate residents about potential attractants or relocate the bears before they become a risk to themselves and the community. It also limits the chances of a bear being euthanized. (Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald file)<\/span>du1-i-syn<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

But according to CPW data, only 2.3% of the more than 14,000 bear reports in the last three years have resulted in euthanasia for the most serious cases.<\/p>\n

By communicating with the agency, Southwest Colorado residents can limit the chances of a bear being euthanized. Homeowners can also mitigate conflict by properly securing bear-proof trash cans and placing only garbage outdoors during pickup days, Livingston said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need help from local communities to develop strategies to secure garbage and other attractants across bear habitat,\u201d said Kristin Cannon, CPW\u2019s northeast region deputy regional manager. \u201cUltimately, it will also require individuals to take some responsibility and follow proper guidelines on living appropriately with bears to protect them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hungry bears will begin to emerge from hibernation soon as Southwest Colorado moves toward spring, making now an ideal time to begin considering precautions.<\/p>\n

\u201cA few more 60-degree days like this and I\u2019m sure we\u2019ll start seeing these bears starting to get active again,\u201d Livingston said.<\/p>\n

ahannon@durangoherald.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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