American black bears (Ursus americanus) and brown bears (U. arctos) can be important predators on neonatal ungulates. They prey less commonly on adult ungulates. Bear predation appears to be additive at low ungulate densities and may become compensatory as prey density approaches carrying capacity, K. As such, black and brown bear predation can limit, but generally does not regulate, ungulate populations. Maternal and neonatal physical condition, birth synchrony, and birth mass may predispose neonates to predation or other mortality factors. Though black and brown bear predation is an important proximate cause of ungulate neonatal mortality, habitat quality and quantity are important ultimate factors influencing this dynamic. Manipulating bear populations to enhance ungulate populations may be successful in the short-term if predation is additive, but long-term success has not been demonstrated.

DNA from remotely-collected samples of hair or feces provides a means of assessing attributes of populations of wild animals, including genetic diversity, spatial distribution, patterns of habitat use, dispersal distances, population fragmentation, and population size. This technique has been called noninvasive genetic sampling, a term in common usage especially in the bear literature. It has taken on the connotation of being more humane than techniques such as radiotelemetry that require capture of animals. The term noninvasive, however, is misapplied: in the biological-genetic sense, it refers only to the invasion of the body (through the skin or an orifice), not to capture or general intrusiveness. If it is construed to mean nonintrusive in a more general sense, then other methods of collecting population data that do not require animal capture, such as camera trapping, sign surveys, sightings, and interviews, should be called noninvasive as well. Moreover, once an animal is radiocollared, the process of collecting telemetry data is also noninvasive. I recommend the use of a more neutral and also more informative and technically correct term, “remote,” to describe genetic and other forms of sampling that do not involve human handling of animals. Remote sampling aids investigators in reducing their effects on the study subjects and also may provide larger samples than can be obtained by trapping. However, many of the important biological questions that can be (and for >30 years have been) studied by capturing animals and tracking them telemetrically cannot be addressed with genetic or other remote sampling techniques.

Hedysarum (Hedysarum spp.) roots are a major food for grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) over much of their Canadian and Alaskan range. In Banff National Park, grizzly bears typically dig roots of pink hedysarum (H. alpinum) in willow (Salix glauca, S. farriae) – dwarf birch (Betula glandulosa) shrubland. This shrubland type often burned in the past, but the effects of shrubland fire on grizzly bear feeding ecology have not been studied. We applied shrubland fire to pink hedysarum digging habitat in Banff National Park and measured grizzly bear response by counting their excavations for pink hedysarum roots over the subsequent 4–6 years. In 4 of 6 study sites, a positive fire effect was recorded: the digging density ratio (digging density in burned habitat divided by digging density in unburned control) increased 4.5x to 14.3x following fire compared to the ratio we recorded in the same treatment and control areas before fire was applied. In the remaining 2 study sites, grizzly bears dug 1 site essentially the same following fire (postfire ratio = 1.1 x prefire ratio), and 1 site showed a weak negative fire effect (postfire ratio = 0.8 x prefire ratio). Overall, fire resulted in >6x increase in the digging density ratio compared to the prefire ratio (n = 6 sites). Ease of digging did not appear to be an important factor in our study: the pull required to release a steel bar driven 11 cm into the substrate immediately beside diggings was approximately equal in burned and unburned habitat. The strong preference grizzly bears showed for excavating pink hedysarum roots in burned habitat suggests that shrubland fire may benefit grizzly bears in Banff National Park and perhaps elsewhere in North America where comparable digging habitat occurs.

We documented food habits of brown bear (Ursus arctos) during summer 2005 in an important calving area for Tibetan antelope (Pantholops hodgsonii) in the Kekexili Nature Reserve, Qinghai province, China. Fecal analysis (n = 83) revealed that the plateau pika (Ochotona curzoniae) was the primary prey (78% occurrence, 46% dry weight), and that wild yak (Bos grunniens; 39%, 31%) and Tibetan antelope (35%, 17%) were important alternative prey. Vegetation also occurred in bear feces (17% occurrence). Brown bears in this region were evidently primarily carnivorous, a survival tactic adapted to the special environment of Qinghai–Tibetan plateau.

Non-invasive genetic sampling has become a favored tool to enumerate wildlife. Genetic errors, caused by poor quality samples, can lead to substantial biases in numerical estimates of individuals. We demonstrate how the computer program DROPOUT can detect amplification errors (false alleles and allelic dropout) in a black bear (Ursus americanus) dataset collected in 2003 from northern Idaho, USA, and detect scoring and other database errors (misreads, shifts in scoring, and transcription errors). Removing errors from our sample via computer techniques reduced our minimum number alive index from 187 to 146 bears and was less expensive than commonly used multi-tube approaches. We subsequently estimated gene flow between our 2 study areas (Purcell and Selkirk Mountains), which are separated by a large, open, agricultural valley. Gene flow data suggested that, although this valley was not a complete barrier to movement, its effects on population substructure were not inconsequential. We documented a low level of substructure (G′_ST = 0.097) between study areas. Assignment tests confirmed this, as assignment to the population where the animal was captured was 74% for the Purcell Mountains and 89% for the Selkirk Mountains.

Despite the widespread use of DNA mark–recapture for estimation of grizzly bear (Ursus arctos) population size, there have been no designed experiments of DNA sampling strategies. We designed a large-scale study (8,820 km²) in the foothills of Alberta, Canada, to test sampling strategies associated with the hair snag DNA method. The main sampling method for this project used a traditional design in which bait sites were moved within 180 7 x 7 km grid cells for 4 2-week sampling sessions in the spring of 2004. However, we also tested other strategies concurrently with the traditional design. We sampled fixed sites within each cell to test the utility of moving sites compared to the less-expensive method of not moving sites. We also placed a second, lower strand of barbed wire on bait sites to see if this could identify cubs, which are not typically sampled by the usual knee-height strand of barbed wire. We compared summary statistics, capture probability variation, population estimates, and the precision of population estimates for each design. The moved-sites designs captured more bears each session, captured more individual bears (especially females), and displayed population estimates that were 15–25% higher for females. Estimates for males were similar between designs. These results suggest that the moved-sites designs were more efficient in sampling the entire population at the 7 x 7 km grid cell size. These results highlight the need for all bears to have adequate trap encounter opportunities to ensure unbiased estimates. It also demonstrates the utility of collecting enhanced data sets to test and optimize DNA sampling strategies.

We examined the occurrence of brown bear (Ursus arctos) in Finland by using hunter-provided observations and harvest data for 1992–2004. We calculated a simple index (bears observed/all observation cards) from observation cards filled annually by nearly 5,000 moose hunting clubs. This occurrence index was treated as a dependent variable in a mixed regression model to examine differences between regions and periods. Both region and period effects were significant. The index was highest in the eastern region of Finland, followed by central, northern, and western Finland. Trends provided evidence of population growth during the first 9 years of the study and then a slight decline in all regions. There was no two-way interaction between region and period, suggesting that trends were similar among regions. The observation index was best related to former harvest rate with 3 years' time lag. The levelling off and the recent slight decline in central and western Finland implies that the population has not met the target set by a government working group in 1996 of a substantial increase in these regions. We suggest that harvest rates should be kept at the very low levels of recent years in eastern and central Finland. In particular, females in central Finland will need to be more effectively protected before the goals set by the working group can be achieved.

We studied brown bear (Ursus arctos) use of a garbage dump in Dillingham, Alaska, USA, in 1997 prior to an impending dump closure. During the summers of 1991–96, incidental observations of bears at the dump indicated 40–80 individuals fed there. Seventy brown bears used the dump from 19 May to 29 September 1997, including 25 adult males, 11 subadults (4 females, 7 males), 9 females with cubs (n = 19 cubs), and 6 adult females. Males and females constituted 63% (n = 32) and 37% (n = 19) of the adult population, respectively. Seventeen bears were predictable users and showed regular temporal patterns of use. The dump appeared important to these bears, and they could be adversely impacted by its closure. The total number of bears observed per night varied from 4 to 33. Peak use occurred on 1 July and 9 July and coincided with low availability of high quality natural foods, suggesting the dump was a supplemental food source to most bears. This indicated closure would probably have minimal effect to most bears because it was not used by a consistently high number of them throughout the season. Subadult use mainly occurred in June. Adult males predominated in July and August. Females with cubs predominated in September when use by other age classes was negligible. Subadults were the least and females with cubs were the most socially dominant bears, respectively. Garbage pile size was reduced and kept small throughout the summer to minimize bear use. Smaller pile sizes restricted the number of bears that fed on garbage. Management recommendations for improving the safety of bears and humans at dumps in other rural areas include electric fencing, tighter enforcement of government waste disposal regulations, more efficient dump designs, and restricted human access.

We documented the adoption of a cub by a female Louisiana black bear (Ursus americanus luteolus) after the cub was apparently abandoned by its biological mother. The adoption and presumed abandonment took place in a reintroduced population and involved recently translocated bears. We are unaware of previous published descriptions of free ranging female black bears adopting cubs without human intervention.

Published literature would suggest that the distribution of sun bears (Ursus malayanus) in India does not extend northward into Manipur province. Based on interviews in the Ukhrul and Chandel districts and Yangaoupokpi Lokchao wildlife sanctuary, Manipur, during 2004–05, we provide evidence that small population are still extant in Manipur.

We describe symptoms and prevalence of an undiagnosed dermatitis in American black bears (Ursus americanus), characterized by alopecia and edema of the head, neck, and thorax. The dermatitis was primarily associated with hibernation: observed during 23% of 358 den handlings (excluding cubs), but <1% of 521 active season captures. It appears common, but rarely life-threatening; etiology, distribution, and transmission are interesting topics for further study.