# Bear Hunting in Midland County!!!



## Rustyaxecamp (Mar 1, 2005)

Front page of the Midland paper today ...

*Bear hunting proposed for Midland County* 

By Steve Griffin 
02/01/2007



Midland? Bear country? 


The DNR's Wildlife Division says Midland County is indeed home to black bears, as are an increasing number of areas in Lower Michigan. 
And to slow what biologists generally see as a healthy trend, the agency proposes to expand hunting units, to include Midland and some nearby counties. 

The habitat can support its bears and more, but there's a question whether people can or will. 

"There are two kinds of carrying capacity," said DNR bear and furbearer specialist Dave Bostick Wednesday. "Biological carrying capacity concerns habitat. Social carrying capacity is what people will tolerate." 

One sometimes can increase the social carrying capacity, said Bostick, "by educating people, talking about bear biology and ecology. People tend to be afraid of things that are new. And an adult bear is a large animal." 

A large animal with so-so PR. 

"Nationwide, there are a dozen to 20 bear attacks a year, a fatality about every other year -- just enough to keep them in mind," said Bostick. "You're more likely to be attacked by your neighbor's dog. But when folks are scared, numbers don't matter." 

Bear education efforts, such as a program Bostick presented at the Chippewa Nature Center a couple of months ago, aim to reduce the fear. 

In his "Living in Bear Country" presentation, said Bostick, "I talk about bear biology, but also about how to live in bear country. Things like keeping your garbage secure, taking down bird feeders if there are bears in the area. 

"Bird feeders are like candy to bears. If you have a bear in the area, you'll see it at a bird feeder." 

And people are seeing bears. 

"We've had more and more reports from the counties just south of our (Gladwin and Baldwin) bear management units," said Bostick. 

"Starting about five to seven years ago, we began getting more reports of females with cubs in these areas, evidence of resident bear populations in those counties. Before we had occasional reports of dispersed males." 

The sex of the bear you see reflects what's going on, said Bostick. In early summer, male bears 15 or 16 months old are kicked out of family groups by their mothers, and set off to find and establish their own home ranges. 

That movement is what occasionally puts young male bears in headlines and trouble as they wander into towns and other unbearish places. 

Unlike adult male bears, which establish county-sized home territories of 100 to 300 square miles, female bears spend more of their time within a township-sized area of just 20 to 50 square miles, Bostick said. 

Young females, when they leave their mother's side, generally establish their home haunts at the edge of the mother's range, often within the same human-sketched county. 

Bear hunting is managed in Bear Management Units (BMUs), the nearest the Gladwin BMU. Also on the border between northern and southern Lower Michigan is the Baldwin BMU. 

A proposal before the Natural Resources Commission next week would expand both to include counties adjacent to them. The Gladwin BMU then would expand to include Midland and Isabella counties and parts of Bay, Mecosta, Iosco and Ogemaw counties. 

The proposal would be eligible for action by the NRC, which oversees DNR policies and programs, at its March 2007 meeting. 

More hunting, as well as more widespread hunting, would be likely. Bear licenses are eagerly sought by many hunters, and are awarded through lotteries. "Typically, when we add that much territory to a bear management unit, we add some permits." 

The Gladwin area typically gets 150 to 200 bear hunting licenses, but because of relatively low bear density, only about a dozen bears per year are harvested. 

Adding even 50 licenses, said Bostick, would increase the harvest only by a few animals. "But if some of those were breeding-age females, that would help slow the growth of the population, and that's what we're doing right now, trying to slow down the range expansion." 

Those females would have to be loners, since it's illegal to kill a female bear if cubs are present. 

DNR biologists are drafting a new statewide black bear management plan, "and a major issue will be bears in southern Michigan," where, as in northern Michigan, they were once native, said Bostick. 

"They're still not in extreme southern Michigan; and at the moment, we'd like to keep it that way, to slow down range expansion." 

That would give biologists time to teach people about bears. 

Some people are already fans. 

"I love the thought of having bears in the area," said Chippewa Nature Center naturalist Janea Little, while acknowledging that not everyone feels the same. 

Little said she often asks participants in night nature hikes at CNC if they would be more or less likely to hike there if bears were known to be in the area. 

"It's about half and half," she said of the typical response -- adding that the pro-bear vote likely is inflated by its hypothetical nature, and the fact that those asked already are comfortable being outdoors. 

But bears in the Midland area are not hypothetical. 

"About three years ago," said Little, "multiple people saw a large bear, a big male, where Homer Road crosses the Chippewa River. Another person saw what was apparently the same bear, more to the southwest." 

About five years ago, a sow with cubs was seen on West Gordonville Road. 

And, Little said, a CNC staffer has seen a female bear with cubs near his home in Hope. 

More bears? "They would be great to have," said Little, "but we would all have a learning curve." She noted that she behaves differently when visiting the western Upper Peninsula, where bears are numerous, than when venturing outdoors here. 


Bostick said he couldn't guess how many bears live in the Midland area. "There aren't a lot of bears there, but there are some. If you live in Midland County, technically you live in bear country."


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## FreebirdII (Feb 25, 2006)

I have yet to actually see a bear, but I have seen plenty of signs that bears are around.


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## Rustyaxecamp (Mar 1, 2005)

I have also only seen sign. My dad and brother saw one cross Chippewa River Road a few years back.


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## Captain (Feb 11, 2000)

The Gladwin BMU then would expand to include Midland and Isabella counties  

Cool we're in Isabella but just across the road is Midland County...When can I start dumping the Day old donuts out?:yikes:


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## cudaguy (Jan 11, 2007)

I had heard local reports of a bear being seen just north of my property in Billings Township, up to now, I had thought they were just rumors...


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## wcalcaterra (Jan 25, 2007)

This is real interesting, I deer hunt in both Midland and Gladwin counties. I have never seen a beer or sign of a bear. That would be great if they were there and we could hunt them!


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## Sampsons_owner (Dec 30, 2005)

Back in 98 or 99 there were rumors about a bear in the area. One day our veteranarian was out biking north of M-20 west of town. He saw a big black animal lumbering on the edge of a field. He rode over in that direction when he figured out it wasnt a dog he stopped to watch it. He got within 200 yards of it. S


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## wcalcaterra (Jan 25, 2007)

I love bear hunting and if I had an option that was close buy that also provided a good opportuinty the I wouldn't have to go so far North of the Soo.


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## NEMichsportsman (Jul 3, 2001)

I think the opening of additional area in the Gladwin BMU is a good thing. Any expanded opportunities for hunters in Michigan is a good thing!

Whether the Bears are present in great enough numbers to offer a reasonable chance at success (on a level comparable to other areas) remains to be seen?


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## Rustyaxecamp (Mar 1, 2005)

I agree there may not be a great success rate for bear hunting in these counties that are possibly going to be added. It is pretty cool to be able to hunt bear in the county/area I grew up in.

The article opened some eyes around here. Many had no idea that bears are present. Even the number of sportsmen that had no idea is amazing.


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## chuckinduck (May 28, 2003)

I too think this is good news, not only for the oppportunity to increase bear hunting, but its also a good indicator of a prospering bear population in michigan. Who knows, in 20 years we might have bears in 90% of the state, which with proper education, and management I think it'd be a great thing. This story reminds me a lot of coyotes. I can remember when I was young, a friend of ours was a huge trapper, he caught a coyote and it was big news, 25 years later, coyotes are as prevelant as fox, if not more so in many areas of southern michigan.


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## USMCSniper (Dec 21, 2006)

In 1998 I was bowhunting on state land outside of grayling and my cousin and I saw a nice sized bear. That was the first time I heard of bear in that area, now I realize I was obviously uneducated. We still don't see many but I know they are out there. I am glad the population is expanding, perfect example for all the anti's that good management works.


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