Black Bear Stops Traffic; Several Report Numerous Sightings

KINGS MOUNTAIN, N.C.,None — The first time Kathy and Wayne Williams saw a black, 200-pound animal lumber in front of their car on Stony Point Road, they stared in unbelief.

"Was that a —?" Kathy asked. "Yea, that was a bear," her husband answered.

"It was huge, and beautiful and shiny," she said.

In the six weeks since the couple first saw the bear, others have seen the large one and a smaller one in a field surrounded by an electric fence, located on Stony Point Road about two miles from the Woodbridge Handy Mart.

Lynn Dailey, who works at the store, said people stop by all the time and ask her about the bear.

"They are fascinated with it," she said. "They say, ‘I don't know if I was seeing things or not, but there was a bear.' I say, you are not the only one who's seen it."

Wildlife Officer Ken Cook and Daniel Ray, District 8 Wildlife Biologist, investigated the sighting a couple of weeks ago.

"We saw some good bear signs, and at the time there was corn in the field," Cook said. "We decided the bear was attracted to the corn. Once he got in there he liked it. We thought once the corn was gone, he would leave."

Although people have said there are two bears, Cook said after examining the tracks and talking to the owner of the field, he and Ray concluded there was only one bear, about 75-80 pounds.

The bear usually comes out around 8 or 8:30 at night, said Brandy Ward, who lives across the road from the field. She said they have seen two bears.

"We see it about every night," she said. "I know of three times last week. We've seen the baby. There's a big one and a little one. We know he's out there, because the cars stop when they see it. On Sunday night there were eight or nine cars stopped out here and a highway patrolman stopped to see what was going on."

Audrey Lee said a few cars were also pulled off to the side of the road on Tuesday night, with people watching the bear.

"It was lying out there eating," Lee said. "It was maybe 100 feet from the road."

Kathy Williams is worried that the bears are trapped inside the fence and won't be able to get enough food. She and Ward said there are also coyotes in the field, and one of the coyotes wandered into Ward's yard after a car wreck took out part of the fence. Ward saw the coyote about the same time the bear was spotted in the field.

Cook said the field is used as a fox shooting preserve and the charge on the fence is small.

"There is one charger on the entire fence," he said. "It's down at the bottom. It's designed to keep the foxes from digging out. The bear could shoot up a tree and get down on the other side."

Ward's two daughters, Bailee, 12, and Kinslee, 10, don't like to go outside because of the bear.

Kinslee said when Bailee goes out to feed the family dog, she looks everywhere for the bear, because "if I see it, I'm out of there."

Cook said the bears are "probably twice as afraid of us as we are of them."

Jeff Cloninger with Cleveland County Communications said they have received several calls about the bear over the last week.

Cook said bear sightings are common in our area from May to July, because that's the time of year when mothers send their cubs out on their own.

"They come down from the mountains," he said. "Within a couple of weeks, a young bear will disperse on their own."

Black bears are omnivores, he said, and eat mostly corn, berries and fruit. They also eat fish and carcasses.

"They are not predators," he said. "They don't attack and eat."

Reach Jackie Bridges at 704-669-3337.

If you see a bear:

Stay calm and don't run away. Make the bear aware of your presence by speaking in an assertive voice, clap your hands, wave your arms above your head to try to make yourself look bigger and make a lot of noise.

Back up and slowly walk away.

Keep children nearby.

Keep pets locked up.

Don't approach a bear.

Never surround or corner a bear.

If you happen to meet a bear at close range, back away slowly and make lots of noise.

Never feed bears or any wild animals, even if they look hungry or tame.

To prevent problems with bears, do not unintentionally feed them:

Secure bags of trash inside cans stored in a garage, basement or other secure area.

Place trash outside, as late as possible, on trash pick-up days — not the night before. Keep all garbage sites clean.

If a bear is in the area, remove bird feeders and hummingbird feeders, even those advertised as "bear proof."

Avoid "free-feeding" pets outdoors. Do not leave pet foods out overnight. If you must feed pets outdoors, make sure all food is consumed and empty bowls are removed.

Clean all food and grease from barbecue grill after each use. Bears are attracted to food odors and may investigate.

If you already have a problem with a bear:

Try repellents, but don't rely on them. There are no repellents that are registered for use on bears. Sprinkling ammonia or other strong disinfectants on garbage can mask the odor of food.

Frighten the bear. Shouting, clapping, blasting a car horn or motion-sensitive lights may scare off a bear temporarily.

Leave the bear alone. Crowds of people can unnerve a bear, causing it to act unpredictably. The crowd should disperse and allow the bear to move on undisturbed.

Source: N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission, www.ncwildlife.org

WSOC