Citizen cub reporters sought for bear survey
Got a trail camera or two out there? If one of them turned up a bear in 2016, especially a female with cubs, there’s a man from Marquette who wants to hear from you.
Veteran outdoor writer Richard P. Smith is conducting his Michigan Bear Count for 2016 and needs the public’s help to make sure he gets as broad a data base as possible.
“The best way to get a count of the number of bears in the state over the widest area possible,” Smith said in a release, “is by tapping into what Michigan residents know and the popularity of game or scouting cameras can play an important role in that.”
The state Department of Natural Resources’ most recent figures for bears that are at least one year old date back to September 2015, Smith said. The DNR currently estimates the bear population based on the number of animals taken by hunters each year, he said.
“Bear hunting regulations that will be set for 2017, then, will be based on population estimates that are two years old,” Smith said.
He is asking that anyone who saw a bear or had one turn up on trail camera photo in 2016 pass that information along to him.
Reports of sows and the number of cubs each had with them would be of particular value, as the DNR does not currently know how many cubs are produced in the state each year, Smith said. While no survey would be able to tally every cub produced in Michigan for the year, “it would provide a minimum figure and a cub production estimate may be possible from those numbers.”
The results of the 2015 survey were published in the January 2017 issue of Woods-N-Water News.
Reports about 2016 bears seen and photographed can be emailed to Smith at mibearcount@yahoo.com or mailed to Bear Count, 814 Clark St., Marquette, MI 49855.
Include the county where they were seen or photographed in and the day and month. Hunters who harvest a bear should include that information as well so that animal can be deducted from the total.
Smith asks the actual bear photos not be emailed, however, as they take up too much space and can quickly fill the email account.
Smith has long argued for an increase in bear license quotas. Whether that’s a wise move is a complicated debate, but there’s no harm in doing research, provided it’s fair and accurate.