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Massachusetts is bear country. It really is important for people to adjust their behaviors to avoid conflicts with bears. We get bear calls from farmers out in the Berkshires and we get calls from homeowners in a suburban area. Here in Brookline a few years ago we had a black bear show up in a neighborhood just like this. I heard the noise boys went to investigate and I saw the bear walk not even 3 ft away from the house and I had a chain across the top of the can she opened that can up like a sardine can. It it's unbelievable the strength on the paws. By about the 1970s we had about 100 bears in Massachusetts by the 1990s we had about A 1,000. And today we estimate at least 4,000 bears statewide and as that population grows it's continuing to expand into Eastern Massachusetts and closer to 495 and those near Boston suburbs. We actually had a bear cross the Cape Cod Canal and wind up on the Cape and make his way all the way to Provincetown. And you could literally trace the movement of that bear by the 911 calls to local police departments people had never seen it before and they panicked over it. That's where education comes into play where we have to stay on the leading edge of the bear population and work with those towns and those communities and make sure people know what to do when they encounter a bear. The public has to keep in mind that just because a bear is in the area doesn't mean it's a threat. We have never had a black bear attack here in Massachusetts but there have been recent fatal attacks in the Northeast the risk of being attacked by a black bear is very low but always use caution when bears are Close. Black bears are omnivorous which means they eat a variety of different things plant matter meat matter insect larve. But any time of year if human associated food sources are available they'll take advantage of those. Bears are remarkable in their ability to remember. Cubs stay with their mother until they are yearlings and during that time she is showing them the ropes. Where she goes to find seasonal food sources and places where people continuously feed bears become points and those cubs are learning the exact same behavior. So the more and more bears get used to eating human associated food sources it just increases the likelihood that they're going to lose their fear of people. So bringing in bird feeders making sure your trash is in secure outbuildings. Never ever put the trash just in the bag. If you have beehives or chicken coops securing those with electric fencing is very very important. We're not going to change the bear's behavior but we can change the public's behavior and how they respond to bears being in their community. Bears have become more prevalent we as beekeepers usually uh prefer to move the hives or put up a bear fence. It's very gratifying to us to see people learning how to coexist with bears. The public needs to take responsibility and make their property unattractive to bears. Ultimately food sources can lead to a bear that has lost its fear of humans and it will be euthanized when it becomes a public safety threat. If you see a bear in your yard teaching those bears that they need to maintain that fear of people is very important. Get out of here. If the bear runs up a tree it's trying to get away from you so don't go under the tree. Just back away and let the bear be it will come down when it feels comfortable doing so. If the bear is just passing through enjoy the sighting for what it is but try to determine if there are any things that might attract it to your yard. Massachusetts is the third most densely populated state in the country and you have a lot of people on a very small chunk of land living with at least 4,000 black bears. It's really important to modify your behavior so that we can avoid conflicts with black bears.