Over the last fifteen or twenty years, black bears have gradually become much more common in this region of Connecticut.  There is a fair bit of open space close by, most importantly the large tracts owned by the state and the water companies, so a breeding population is well established.  Last year a female denned on our property with three yearling male cubs, several other females have been seen (the females all have easily read ear tags) and there is a big male who is easily ID’d by a facial scar.    Bear sign in the woods is common.  It was, therefore, absolutely, no surprise to hear Robin (our horse) flipping out the other night, and even less of a surprise to see that the trash can was once more dragged across the lawn in the morning.*  A bear had clearly visited at about midnight.  It was a bit annoying but hardly unexpected; still I would like to figure out a location to hang a suet feeder for the woodpeckers again.  I will not hang it from a second story porch though, I don’t need them climbing the porches, they already climb the exterior stairs….

One of the young males on the front porch, they actually aren’t as big as you would think!  But nice claws there…

The young males, in a pine tree, a few months earlier.**

*Black bears are not a real threat to the horse; however, they could be and Robin knows this, he generally stands his ground halfway along the top fence line, which gives him a clear 360 degree view and plenty of space to run.  Dogs, which actually are a more serious threat to a horse, are something he has every intention of dispatching with extreme prejudice, but he knows better than to tangle with a bear.

** Not as stupid a picture as it would seem, I was with the DEP guys who were resetting the collar on the mother bear, who was solidly tranquilized at the base of the pine.  Those cubs had no intention of coming down or going anywhere at all, still we knew where they were.