Bears are generally very…

Bears are generally very timid creatures and do their best to avoid humans. The likelihood of a bear attacking a human is remarkably low and bears that are habituated to human presence are even less likely to behave aggressively towards people.

Hunting in the spring is horrific and cruel because it is a time of vulnerability for bears and other animals that have endured winter and lost body mass. Bears are hungry when they come out of hibernation, there are newborns that must be nourished, and mothers are anxious to feed their young.

It is not easy to distinguish a bear’s gender at a distance and often, bear cubs are kept hidden in safety, so it is not always clear if a roaming female has cubs or not. Hunters will unknowingly shoot mother bears, leaving their cubs orphaned and doomed to suffer and die.

Bear baiting is another contentious subject that should deter the idea of a spring bear hunt. To make an easy shot for hunters (what is the point of this blood lust sport), baiting stations are used to attract bears in the spring. Baiting also discourages bears from pursuing natural food sources and increases the likelihood that they will search for nourishment near areas of human establishment.

Using education, bylaws, aversion, monitoring and evaluation, we can enhance human-bear coexistence. There is no evidence that a reduced bear population would be less likely to search for food around human habitat especially when you allow bear baiting.