Spatiotemporal Patterns of Macrohabitat Use by Female Black Bears during Fall

• Published in: Bears, their biology and management Vol. 9; pp. 339 - 348
• Main Authors: Schooley, Robert L., McLaughlin, Craig R., Krohn, William B., Matula, George J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: International Association for Bear Research and Management 01-01-1994
• Subjects: Bears; Black bears; Ecology: Bears and Their Environment; Forest habitats; Habitat preferences; Habitat selection; Hardwood forests; Hardwoods; Softwoods; Spectacle; Summer
• DOI: 10.2307/3872719
• EISSN: 2376-385X
• ISSN: 1936-0614

We compared habitat use and movements of 82 radio-collared female black bears (Ursus americanus) at 3 dissimilar study areas in Maine during fall from 1986 to 1988. We focused on the use of northern hardwood forests containing American beech (Fagus grandifolia). Many beech forests in the northeastern United States have been infected with beech bark disease, which may limit beechnut availability. At the Spectacle Pond and Stacyville study areas, annual variation in habitat use was pronounced and was related to abundance of beechnuts. Bears used hardwood forests more when beechnuts were abundant (1986 and 1988) than when beechnuts were scarce (1987). At the Bradford study area, where habitat was more diverse and beech trees were less common, habitat use did not vary annually, and use of hardwoods and softwoods was proportional to availability. Maximum fall movements by bears, away from summer ranges, did not vary annually within areas. Fall movements were greater for bears at Stacyville (median = 7.3 km, n = 19 bear-years) than at Spectacle Pond (median = 1.3 km, n = 52) or at Bradford (median = 0.9 km, n = 28) and reflected distribution of food resources on a landscape scale. In all areas, most long movements (7.7-78.6 km) during fall were to hardwood forests when beechnuts were abundant. Bears usually denned within or near (≤1.0 km) their summer ranges despite long fall movements. We provide recommendations for managing northern hardwoods to maintain beechnut production.