Residents of Carson City, Tahoe, and Reno are reporting increased bear sightings over the last week in public areas.
That’s because bears are in hyperphagia right now, which is when they’re looking to gain weight and gather as much food as possible before entering hibernation.
“They start to go into hibernation in late November and early December,” said Kenzie Margiott, Public Information Officer for the Nevada Department of Wildlife. “It is important for them to build that fat storage. So, they're not going to go into hibernation until they feel that their body is ready.”
Bears in this phase will spend up to 20 hours per day eating and collecting about 20,000 calories in preparation for hibernation.
The three bears spotted at Rancho San Rafael Park on Monday afternoon had to be captured by the Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) due to the proximity to the Dragon Lights Festival and other parkgoers. The mama bear and her two cubs were darted in order to be captured safely and have already been released back into the wild.
“It was the quickest, most effective way to get those bears into our custody and do all the tests that we needed to do,” said Margiott. “The bears were not acting aggressive. No one was hurt. And the bears are not harmed when they're darted.”
NDOW asks the public to help them keep bears safe and out of populated areas by getting rid of outdoor attractants.
“The best thing that we can do as humans is coexist with wildlife, and the best way to do that is removing those attractants,” said Margiott. “If trash day is on Wednesday, go ahead and put that trash out Wednesday morning instead of Tuesday night, as inconvenient as that might be. If you have fruit trees, make sure you're collecting that fallen fruit.”
She also says folks should bring in their bird feeders, especially hummingbird feeders, any outdoor food for pets, and scrub any outdoor grills thoroughly after each use.
View NDOW’s website for more information here.
