# Bear Track? 1-16-06-Picture



## woodsrat (Jan 4, 2005)

O.K. First and foremost, I am not a Bear hunter and don't know much about it. While Coyote hunting on a particular piece of property I encountered these prints. They look like Bear tracks to me. Very fresh and there were some of these prints Saturday too.

My question is, shouldn't Bear be hibernating? Or don't they hibernate during mild winters? 

Sorry the picture isn't very clear but I took it with my camera-phone. That's a 3" mag 12 gauge shell next to the print.


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## One Eye (Sep 10, 2000)

woodsrat said:


> My question is, shouldn't Bear be hibernating? Or don't they hibernate during mild winters?


Not all bears hibernate as deeply as others. We have jumped bears out of their dens during the winter while predator hunting. I have a friend who used to assist the DNR with collaring efforts, and he says that some bears will be deep asleep, while others would take off every time they tried to approach their dens.

I am sure this screwy weather has them mixed up too.

Dan


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## wyle_e_coyote (Aug 13, 2004)

Looks like a Bear track to me.
Bears are like *****, if it warms up enough they'll come out to look for food. 
Cool pic thanks!


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## wally-eye (Oct 27, 2004)

_a baby sasquatch track _


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## Spardon (Oct 13, 2005)

It's gotta be a cougar track :lol:


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## FishMichv2 (Oct 18, 2004)

a bears rear print is different from it front track, look for tracks that are are longer that would be in stride with the tracks you found. you can laugh about it being a cougar but it actually looks cery similar to one. try to google bear and cougar tracks.


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## Big Game (Feb 7, 2002)

Yep that's a bear. Most people have the idea that bears are heavy sleepers during winter months. They are not true hibernators. They have been seeing bear tracks up here very frequently lately. In fact some guys up here ran one on New Years day and one of there dogs got hit by a snowmobile. It's too bad because that was one of the better bear dogs I've seen up here. I was fortunate to get a pup out of him though. Anyways when talking with an old timer at the hound club he figures that some boars just lay under a blowdown and the snow eventually covers him up. When the snow melts off during an extended January thaw the bears are left exposed to the elements and eventually go off in search for a new den.


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## StumpJumper (Nov 13, 2001)

Doesn't bears leave claw marks, or is that them all bunched together above the front toes?


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## woodsrat (Jan 4, 2005)

StumpJumper said:


> Doesn't bears leave claw marks, or is that them all bunched together above the front toes?


There were no claw marks in any of the tracks in about 100-120 yards worth of footprints.


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## Big Game (Feb 7, 2002)

Actually black bears won't leave claw marks genearlly. Grizzly and brown do because they have the longer claws. Black bear claws are much shorter in length. In snow with moisture in it I could see where a black bear could possibly leave claw marks but the conditions would have to be just right and you would have to look real real close to find them as only the very tip would leave a print. I think grizzly claws are also more flat than Blk bear claws and that makes them show easier along with the larger claw size also. 

I'm always looking at bear tracks during the summer months and very rarely, if at all, see claws. Speaking of blk bears and denning up did you know that during this time they will also shed the skin on their foot pad. Even in the warmer climates where they don't den up, blk bears need to slow down enough during this time so that their new skin can toughen up.


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## devo024 (Nov 10, 2005)

Someone said that the front tracks are different than the rear, how are they different? I found what I thought was a bear track while deer hunting this year NW of Muskegon, Oceana Co. It was longer than this track, it allmost looked like I laid my hand flat in the snow, with no thumb of course, but was longer than my hand.


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## woodsrat (Jan 4, 2005)

Here are some pictures I took today of the rear print of Bear. The claws of this Bear were obvious in each and every step. Unlike the first track I posted, this was very obviously a Bear.


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## woodsrat (Jan 4, 2005)




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## devo024 (Nov 10, 2005)

That rear print sure looks like what I saw, right around the same size also. Would any other animal make a print that looks something like that? It just seems hard for me to believe there is a bear at my brothers property. There are alot of farms around him, and I never heard anyone there saying anything about bears. Also, they had alot of snow that 2nd week of deer season, so I would think the bear would still be sleeping. Anyone heard of any bear activity this fall in Oceana Co. near Hesperia?


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## woodsrat (Jan 4, 2005)

devo024 said:


> That rear print sure looks like what I saw, right around the same size also. Would any other animal make a print that looks something like that? It just seems hard for me to believe there is a bear at my brothers property. There are alot of farms around him, and I never heard anyone there saying anything about bears. Also, they had alot of snow that 2nd week of deer season, so I would think the bear would still be sleeping. Anyone heard of any bear activity this fall in Oceana Co. near Hesperia?


There are plenty of Bear around Hesperia. Most Bear are still running around during firearm deer season. We see them in the U.P. frequently during the firearm deer season.


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## devo024 (Nov 10, 2005)

Well, at least now I know Im not crazy, I told him it was a bear track!:lol:


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## Brandon (May 13, 2004)

devo024 I live in Grant which is south and east of Hesperia in the southern part of Newaygo Co. I don't know if you are familar with the Muskegon State game area, but I was told that in the last 3 years 28 bears have been released there. Apparently any time there is a roudy bear they release it there.


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## devo024 (Nov 10, 2005)

The post about the bear head being found is awfully close to my brothers, within 5 miles. Hope it wasnt the one on my brothers property. I am not exactly sure where that road is (136th I think they said) but I know I have passed by it, and we are surrounded by apple orchards. Wonder if it was the orchard across the street.


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