Black Bears in Ridgefield?

Yes but not to worry. Over the past week there have been a couple of black bear sightings in Ridgefield. With Connecticut’s landscape converting back to forest, it has become more and more black bear friendly. Black bears are intelligent animals and very adaptable. Their preferred habitat is deciduous forests with abundance of fruits and nuts. An opportunist omnivore, their diet varies with the seasons and ranges from early spring shoots, carrion and fawns to insects, berries, nuts and roots. This time of year they are bulking up for their winter nap. Seeds from our birdfeeders are a great source of fat and protein and supplement the regular nuts and seeds that are found in the wild. They have a keen sense of smell and can detect food at a great distance. So, odors from grills, outside pet food, birdfeeders, and garbage are like a fast food beacon to them.

This is the time of year that the yearlings are looking to establish new territories where they can claim a den site. Some will travel great distances. Depending on the gender and terrain, a CT black bear’s home range can vary from 5 - 60 square miles. Although ranges can overlap, with the population increasing, the bears are becoming more visible.

Black Bears are not as aggressive as their western grizzly cousins. Except for a mother and cubs, they prefer to forage alone at night. They have keen hearing and normally leave the area once it senses human presence. If you see a bear, enjoy it but from a distance. The CT DEP website contains lots of dos and don’ts about bears, a fact sheet, sighting numbers and even how to report a bear sighting. Just type in “CT DEP bears” into any search engine for the latest information. And now it is time for this blogger to go out and buy another birdfeeder. (Photo courtesy of Memphis zoo)