Monthly Archives: February 2018

Humans and Bears on Kodiak Island from the 1960s through the 1980s

Last week, I wrote about the early relationship between humans and bears on Kodiak Island. Over the next two weeks, I’ll tell you the rest of the story.

Over the 1940s and 50s, the government of Alaska denied ranchers’ requests for stricter predator-control measures against bears, but policies changed in the 1960s when the Alaska Department of Fish and Game worked with ranchers to pursue and kill bears suspected of killing cattle. The Department of Fish and Game went so far as to quietly hire two WWII fighter pilots to shoot bears with a semi-automatic M-1 Garand rifle mounted on a Piper Super Cub aircraft. A group of irate Kodiak hunting guides informed Outdoor Life, and the magazine ran a sensational cover story titled “The Kodiak Bear War.” In 1970, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game decided it was not appropriate for the agency to be involved in a predator-control program on brown bears and it ceased its relationship with the ranchers.

Also in the 1960s, the number of sport-killed bears greatly increased, causing the Alaska Department of Fish and Game and the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge to enact stricter hunting regulations and seasons, and by the mid-1970s, a well-regulated permit system was in place.

During the 1970s and 1980s, concern and research focused more heavily on Kodiak-brown-bear habitat. The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) was signed into law on December 18, 1971. As a result of ANCSA, local native groups on Kodiak selected as their land much of the coastline of Kodiak, the Karluk River drainage, and several other smaller islands in the archipelago, causing the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge to lose control of 310,000 acres of prime bear habitat.

In 1979, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission began working on an environmental impact statement for a proposed hydroelectric project and dam at Terror Lake on the north end of Kodiak Island. The public and various agencies were concerned the project would disturb bear denning and feeding areas, and finally, a settlement was reached in 1981, providing funds to support research on project impacts on salmon, mountain goats, and bears. This agreement established The Kodiak Brown Bear Trust, which is still a source of funds for brown bear research and habitat protection. Research indicated the hydroelectric project had few long-term negative impacts on bears, and the project supported highly beneficial research.

On March 24th, 1989, the Exxon Valdez spilled eleven million gallons of crude oil in Prince William Sound. As the oil spread, ocean currents carried it to Kodiak, killing seabirds, eagles, sea otters, harbor seals, and killer whales. Oil washed onto the beaches, causing habitat destruction and resulting in reduced salmon runs in the following years. I have read several articles stating no bears were directly killed by eating oiled birds or animal carcasses, but I believe this statement is inaccurate. I personally saw two dead bears on remote beaches during the summer of 1989, and while necropsies were not performed on the animals, it is unusual to see a dead bear on the beach, and I think it is likely their deaths were directly linked to the contaminated beaches and the oiled bird and animal carcasses that had drifted onto those beaches. Furthermore, if I saw two dead bears, it is not only possible but probable there were more. The vegetation on Kodiak is very dense in the summer, so it would be difficult to spot a sick bear if it wandered into the brush and died. One positive development from the oil spill was that much of the money from the Exxon Valdez Settlement Fund was used to buy back Refuge lands and critical bear habitat previously lost due to ANCSA.

Next week, I will explore how deer and goat hunters and bear viewers affect Kodiak bears. The debate over how much humans should be allowed to impact wildlife will never end. While it would be wonderful if animals could roam free with no interference from humans, consumptive and non-consumptive human users provide the necessary funds to protect wildlife and the habitat.

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Robin Barefield is the author of three Alaska wilderness mystery novels. To download a free copy of one of her novels, watch her webinar about how she became an author and why she writes Alaska wilderness mysteries. Also, sign up below to subscribe to her free, monthly newsletter on true murder and mystery in Alaska.

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The History of the Relationship between Humans and Kodiak Bears

February 18, 2018Kodiak Bear, Kodiak WildlifeBears and Humans, Kodiak Bears, Relationship between humans and bears on Kodiak Island, Robin Barefieldadmin

According to archaeological evidence, Kodiak Island has been inhabited by humans for the last 7500 years, and bears were already on the island when humans arrived. The earliest human occupants are referred to as the Ocean Bay tradition, and while little is known about the relationship Ocean Bay people had with bears, bear bones have been found in archaeological digs of sites dating from this period, indicating they did hunt bears. Interestingly, though, few bear skulls have been found in excavations of Ocean Bay sites, suggesting that the head may have been left in the field as part of a ceremonial practice or a sign of respect for the animal. If the Ocean Bay culture was similar to other early northern cultures, then it is likely bears were revered and perhaps even viewed as emissaries between man and the spirit world.

The Ocean Bay tradition lasted 4000 years and was replaced by the Kachemak tradition which lasted approximately 3200 years and was gradually replaced, beginning 900 years ago, by Alutiiq (Koniag) society. As time progressed, the human population on Kodiak grew, and conflicts between humans and bears undoubtedly increased as well. Excavations at Koniag village sites uncovered a greater number of bear skulls than were found in more ancient sites, indicating either bears were more heavily hunted, or the humans had abandoned the practices that forbade bringing skulls into the villages.

Russian explorers arrived on Kodiak in the early 1760s, and while the Russians were impressed by the huge bears inhabiting the archipelago, their main interest was harvesting sea otters and shipping the valuable pelts to China. Bears were also hunted, but a bear hide was only worth two percent as much as a sea otter pelt. Once the Russians depleted the sea otter population, they more actively sought out other fur-bearing animals including bears, and between 1821 and 1842, 268 bear hides per year were shipped from the Alaska colonies. In 1867, the United States purchased Alaska from Russia, and the brown bear harvest more than doubled, with an average of 548 hides shipped per year from 1867 to 1880.

Russians brought livestock to Kodiak, and when bears began killing the livestock, especially cattle, they were considered a nuisance to be eliminated. At nearly the same time, more efficient methods of fishing by commercial fishing operations on the island led to a depletion of salmon stocks and created greater competition between humans and bears for the fish. Although the U.S. government never set an official bounty on bears as they did on eagles and Dolly Varden, bears were routinely shot, and some canneries offered private bounties on bears.

The Boone and Crockett Club, a wildlife conservation organization, was formed in 1887, and one of its goals was to work for the preservation of wild game in the United States. Thanks to the efforts of the Boone and Crockett Club, the Game and Wild Bird Preservation and Disposition Act, or the Lacey Act as it is commonly called, was signed into law in 1900. This important law provided the first legal protection for wildlife, including the Kodiak bear, in the U.S.

When exotic big-game hunters learned about the huge bears on Kodiak Island, many journeyed to Kodiak in pursuit of a trophy, and the Kodiak bear gained a reputation as one of the ultimate trophy animals in the world. As interest in guided Kodiak bear hunts increased, the Alaska territorial government set strict limits on commercial hunting and selling of bear hides. In 1925, the Alaska Game Commission required any nonresident hunter in Alaska to be accompanied in the field by a registered big-game guide. In the late 1920s and 1930s, commercial and sport hunting were strictly regulated on Kodiak, while shooting bears to protect cattle was not only encouraged but was government sanctioned.

On August 19th, 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 8857, creating the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge which encompassed Uganik Island and most of the southwestern portion of Kodiak Island. The purpose of the refuge was to preserve the natural feeding and breeding range of the Kodiak bear and other wildlife.

Throughout the 1940s and 1950s, cattle ranchers and those involved in the salmon industry fought for stricter predator-control measures against Kodiak bears, while bear hunters and conservationists from across America voiced loud opinions against the concept of bear control, alarmed that the Kodiak bear could easily be wiped out in a few years. After considering all opinions, the Alaska Game Commission in the late 1950s opted against any form of bear control and did not increase the length of the hunting season on Kodiak.

This interesting, complex relationship between humans and bears continues to this day. I’ll tell you more about this relationship over the next two weeks, beginning with the battle between ranchers and Kodiak bears in the 1960s.

As always, I would love to hear your comments and opinions. If you would like to receive my free newsletter on true murder and mystery from Alaska, sign up on the following form.

My publisher recently released a webinar about how I became a published author and why I write Alaska wilderness mysteries. I invite you to watch it and to download a free copy of one of my novels at the end of the webinar. The link is: http://bit.ly/2pcCOo6 .

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How Do Bears Regulate Their Body Temperature, And What Diseases Do They Get?

February 11, 2018Kodiak Bear, Kodiak WildlifeBear Biology, Bear Diseases. Kodiak Bear Diseases, Kodiak Bear, Temperature Regulation in Bears, Trichinosis in Bearsadmin

TEMPERATURE REGULATION

A bear’s body temperature is similar to a human’s and ranges between ninety-eight and ninety-nine degrees Fahrenheit (36.7- 37.2C). Bears do not have sweat glands, though, and the lack of sweat glands coupled with their insulating fur can make staying cool on a hot, sunny day a challenge. Bears employ a variety of techniques to solve this problem, including resting in the shade, stretching out on their bellies on the cool ground, panting like a dog, sitting or lying in a cold stream or the ocean, sprawling on snow patches, and shaking off water when they emerge from a stream. They are also able to dissipate heat through their paws which are well supplied with blood vessels, and they lose heat through areas with minimal fur such as the face, ears, nose, belly and the insides of the legs. To cool down, bears sometimes recline on the ground and spread their legs wide.

DISEASES

Bears are susceptible to a variety of diseases and parasites. Internal parasites include the trichinella worm (trichinosis), trematodes, nematodes, lungworms, hookworms, flukes, blood parasites, intestinal worms, and tapeworms. Tapeworms are especially prevalent in Kodiak bears because they eat large quantities of raw fish. It is not uncommon to see a bear in the summer months with a several-foot-long tapeworm trailing from its anus. Notice the tapeworm in this photo.
Bears can also suffer from many of the same ailments that affect other mammals, including arthritis. Traumatic injuries can be very devastating to a bear, especially if the injuries affect the bear’s ability to procure food or protect himself. Poor teeth can directly impact a bear’s ability to eat, and any factor leading to inadequate fat reserves before hibernation can result in starvation.

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The Kodiak Archipelago is home to 3500 bears and 13,600 humans, so how do the bears and humans interact? Next week, I’ll tackle the topic of bears and humans.

I invite you to watch my webinar about how I became a published author and the true-life adventures that provide the inspiration for my Alaska wilderness mysteries. Stay until the end of the webinar and receive a free e-book of one of my novels. This is the link : http://bit.ly/2pcCOo6 . Also, please sign up below for my real-life mystery newsletter.

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Kodiak Bear Cubs

February 4, 2018Kodiak Bear, Kodiak Wildlifebrown bear cubs, Brown Bear Cubs at Birth, Brown Bears, Kodiak Bear Cubs, Kodiak Bears, Kodiak Island, Robin Barefieldadmin

A Kodiak bear cub fetus develops for only two-and-one-half months, so the cubs are very underdeveloped when they are born. No other mammals except marsupials have such immature offspring at birth. The cubs weigh 1/400 to 1/1000 of what they will weigh as adults. If the same were true for humans, a grown man might weigh as much as 8000 lbs. Cubs are born at such a premature stage of development because the mother must provide nutrients for her unborn young while she is in hibernation and not eating. She provides these nutrients by breaking down her body protein, which causes her to lose muscle mass. If she carried the cubs longer, she would lose too much muscle mass and would not be able to move by the end of hibernation. While a shorter gestation period produces underdeveloped cubs, the mother maintains enough physical strength to be able to care for her offspring. Cubs continue to develop after they are born.

At birth, brown bear cubs are nearly helpless. They can detect temperature changes and move closer to their mother to seek warmth, and they are also able to find the sow’s nipples to nurse. They weigh about one pound (.5 kg) and are blind, deaf, and unable to smell. They are covered by a fine hair and are toothless, weak, and uncoordinated.

A brown bear sow has three pairs of nipples. She may nurse on her side in the den but normally nurses in a sitting or partially-reclined position after emerging from the den. A bear’s milk contains an average of 33% fat, as compared to human milk which contains 3.5% fat. Bear’s milk consists of 11 to 15% protein and 0.3 to 0.6% carbohydrates. Due to this diet of rich milk, brown bear cubs grow rapidly.

A cub’s eyes open about four weeks after birth, and he begins to walk at six weeks. A Kodiak bear cub’s weight doubles every two months during the first year. The cubs are completely dependent on nursing for 24 weeks and may continue to nurse for as long as 82 weeks.

On Kodiak, most cubs stay with their mothers for three years, and nearly half of all Kodiak bear cubs die before they leave their mothers. Causes of death range from starvation, accidental separation from their mother, deliberate abandonment by their mother, fights with other bears, accidents, and infanticide, most often, but not always, by large boars.

Researchers have postulated that the reason for infanticide, the killing of the young of one’s species, is so the male can eliminate the offspring of another male, bring the female into estrus, mate with her, and pass along his genes to the next generation. While this theory might prove true for some species, it doesn’t make sense for bears. For one thing, bears are seasonal breeders in the spring, but boars often kill cubs in the summer when the female cannot go into estrus again. During the mating season, a boar would have to kill all the cubs in the litter for the mother to go into estrus, and even then, the female would not become sexually receptive for several weeks. Unless he waited around for the sow to be ready to mate again, the boar who killed the cubs probably would not be the bear who eventually mates with the mother. Also, females are sometimes the perpetrators of infanticide.

A friend of mine saw a large male bear walk up to a den, stick his head in the den, pull out a cub, shake it to death, and continue on his way. It is difficult to coordinate the actions of that boar with any biological theory. We humans often feel the need to understand the purpose behind every animal behavior, yet we do many things with little or no purpose in mind.

Next week I’ll write more about bear biology and behavior. Please let me know if you have any questions or comments.

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Sign up below for my free, monthly mystery newsletter about true murder and mysteries in Alaska. If you’d like to watch a free webinar about how I became a published author and why I write wilderness mysteries, please follow this link: http://bit.ly/2pcCOo6.