WASHINGTON -- Bears will emerge from their dens in coming weeks. As they do, you'll want to be aware that they'll travel great distances to feed that post-hibernation hunger.
"They can travel long distances. When I say that it can be 100 miles, 75 miles, 150 miles. We actually had a bear on the Eastern Shore," says Bob Beyer with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife and Heritage Service.
Just because you don't live in bear country doesn't mean you won't run into one. Bears are showing up with more frequency in Frederick and Montgomery counties.
"We're starting to see more and more bears in the more residential areas."
Beyer recommends taking down your bird feeders for a few weeks.
"If you've got bird feeders out, bears come in," he says.
rest of story here
http://www.wtop.com/?nid=25&sid=1637518
More on bears, Critter note the Frederick connection :>)
I'm going to live dangerously and leave my bird feeder up.
:-)
LOLOL I hope I can put mine back up soon. I miss my birdies.
Jill, keep your camera handy, and check the batteries. We want pictures and stay safe.
No problem. I've got a new superzoom camera.
;-)
Yikes, after the hunter showed us the pictures of the bear tracks he found at the nursery last fall I guess I better keep my eyes open! An odd thing happened over the weekend. Phoebe and I usually take our morning walk down the road but Sunday I decided to walk down through the field to the creek where I had spotted a large green leaf from the car the day before. We got about 30' feet from the creek and Phoebe just stopped and sat down with her nose in the air. Kept trying to coax her to go to the creek for a swim so I could find the plant but she wouldn't budge, something obviously spooked her! I finally gave up and we headed back to the house but the whole time she kept looking back in that direction...do you suppose she "smelled" a bear? The same hunter also reported seeing a bobcat several times in that area last fall so it's possible that could have spooked her as well!
Phoebe is a great gal, something was not right there. She was keeping you from harms way, no matter what it was.
Nothing worse then surprizing a large wild animal, either they turn on you or turn and run away. Glad you are safe. Give her a big hug and a treat.
Way to go, Phoebe!!! And smart that you followed her lead.
Smart girl, Phoebe! What surprised me about the bear here was how quiet he was. I never heard a sound, Jello never barked. He managed to pull down those feeders and break the limb on the tree without making a peep.
I saw a bobcat while walking in the woods with my dog at my old house in Prince William years ago. It was small and at first I thought it was a large housecat. It just stared at us, we just stared at it and then it took off.
Yup, Phoebe's my sweetheart :) I never thought about the fact that she was protecting me but I think you're all right!
We are indeed getting a few bears around here. Check out this story from last year.
Bear Stuck in Tree Causes Stir in Frederick
http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/0808/547374.html
Best line from that story: "I thought it was a teddy bear!"
Thanks for the link!