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Dear Bamaranger,
The numbers in the article from other source appear to be accurate. My take is the tone of the article that completely ignored the fact that black bear populations have doubled in north America in the last 2-3 decades which is well documented in numerous sources.
The fact that they are spreading back into alabama is also documented after being exterminated years ago in that state.
The other issue is his consideration that black bears are poor predators. Grizzly bears are considered apex predators, yet their diet is predominantly vegetarian just as black bears. Black bears are very capable predators and they are also scavengers and opportunist eaters. Black bears eat moose and elk calfs and have been known to ambush even adult moose and elk. They also eat a wide variety of insects as well in addition to the large amount of vegetation. In addition, they are very capable of catching trout and salmon. With the ability to outrun much of their prey, calling them a poor predator is a distortion of the truth in my opinion.
By any account, the linked article above I posted is a biased report. It would be nice to see a balanced report on black bears in Alabama without invoking sympathetic support through slanted opinions. We have much too much of that now in all of our "scientific" reports in multiple fields.
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