by Bee Harris, PWL Member
A primary goal of the Texas Black Bear Alliance is to assist in bringing black bears back to East Texas. Currently, black bears are found in North and West Texas; but the bear species native to East Texas – the Louisiana Black Bear – has all but vanished from this area due to property fragmentation, deforestation and unregulated sport hunting.
In 2005, Texas Parks and Wildlife Dept. (TPWD) created a management plan for the reintroduction of the Louisiana Black Bear into East Texas. It provides specific guidelines:
- Use a survey to conduct studies in areas labeled as good habitats for initial bear occupation. These studies will reveal the local public’s knowledge and attitude towards the reintroduction of black bears in that area.
- Develop an outreach program to inform residents of what impact the reintroduction of bears will have in their communities.
- Schedule open forum public meetings with question and answer sessions.
- Interview persons opposed to the introduction and impact of black bears. Use this information to make modifications in the plans for the reintroduction of black bears.
Although black bears have been sighted in east Texas in the past, there have been no sightings for quite a while. However, black bears are coming back. It is not known when, what is known is that it will happen.
TPWD AND TBBA consider educating the public about living with black bears a priority. For them, it is imperative that the public become well informed about bears and feel comfortable living in the same areas. A plan to educate children in school (starting in 4th grade) about living in the vicinity of bears has been suggested as a way for communities to have a positive attitude towards the introduction of bears. These children will grow up into adulthood informed about the expectations of living with black bears.
Long ago, bears were part of the east Texas ecosystem, providing benefits such as seed dispersal, scavenging, and potentially regulating plant and animal populations. It is not known what impact bears will have when they come back.
A Timeline of the Actions Taken to Reintroduce Black Bears to East Texas
1998 Habitats for black bears were identified in East Texas.
2003 Twelve counties in Southeast Texas were surveyed.
2004-2005 Texas Parks and Wildlife Dept. set up public meetings to discuss issues pertaining to bears.
2005 East Texas Black Bear Management Plan was developed. Its purpose is to restore bears to suitable habitat as natural recolonization is unlikely.
2006 The Northeast Texas Survey and Louisiana Survey did not find evidence of black bear. Those individuals surveyed had grown up in a culture where black bears were considered a nuisance, dangerous, and to be gotten rid of. Two-thirds of the surveyed groups were anti-bear.
What are ideal habitats for black bears? They are hardy to most ecological systems; therefore, bears are compared to feral hogs and their antics are compared to the actions of raccoons.
Bears do not migrate but will travel long distances in search of food. In Louisiana, the bear population, which is in the thousands, is doing so well that, Louisianians had their first bear hunt in 2024. It was limited to 11 bear kills.
It is believed that the last native black bear in east Texas was killed in Polk County in the 1950s.
For more information:
www.texasblackbear.org
facebook.com/TexasBlackBearAlliance