The New York State Department of Transportation comes across a lot of strange things on the roads but this one took everyone by surprise. They have recently shared a cute picture on their social media accounts. It shows a black bear standing up on its hind legs and staring straight into the camera- as if it is striking a pose. The department has cleverly used the pic to hammer home a road safety message. Animals are often found on highways, but their road safety skills are pretty limited! Therefore, it’s up to us humans to ‘slow down, stay alert, and give animals space to roam safely.’
Is It Normal Behavior for Bears to Stand Upright?
Black bears are curious creatures and like to see what is going on. They find out about their environments by looking, listening, and smelling. They get a better picture of what is going on when they stand up on their hind legs. It helps them to see further and helps more scents to enter their noses. Sometimes, you can see them visibly sniffing the air at the same time.
This stance is sometimes mistaken for a sign of aggression but the bear is just being curious.
Black bears are attracted to human food and food waste!
©Sketchart/Shutterstock.com
Do Black Bears Get Killed on Roads?
Yes, sadly they do. As populations of black bears and humans grow, our worlds are increasingly overlapping. Black bears are highly attracted to areas where we live because we are surrounded by so much food. Typically, even our garbage cans contain enough food to attract a hungry bear. As the number of bears in urban areas increases, so will the human-bear interactions. Some of them will involve vehicles. There have been numerous reports of black bears being hit by vehicles in the New York area but this is a national problem. All over the country authorities are trying different methods to reduce the risks including the construction of wildlife underpasses, warning signs, and slower speed limits in addition to public information campaigns like this one.
It’s not just the bears that suffer, research has shown that there are up to two million collisions between vehicles and large animals each year across the US. These cause 26,000 human injuries and 200 human deaths and are thought to cost $8 billion every year.
How to avoid collisions with bears
The main advice is to stay alert and drive slowly, especially in areas where bears are known to move around. These are often heavily wooded areas and locations where there are warning signs. Also, be mindful that bears are not as easy to spot from dusk to dawn so extra caution is needed at these times.
