WEST VIRGINIA - West Virginia is home to approximately 1.7 million people and 13,000 bears; thus, the chances of seeing one may not be very likely, though still possible across its 55 counties and more likely in spring when bears emerge from winter hibernation, according to Colin Carpenter, black bear project leader at West Virginia Division of Natural Resources.
Black Bears in West Virginia
The Black Bear (Ursus americanus) is the state animal of West Virginia and can be found throughout 36 states and Canada. They have plantigrade feet with front claws longer than back claws for easy walking, and their ears tend to fold over when running or jumping over obstacles.
Black bears avoid humans unless they're distressed or protect their young. Although solitary creatures, black bears may form pairs during mating season or when food sources become plentiful - leaving scent marks or claw marks as signals for potential danger or territory protection.
A healthy black bear population requires access to prey and sufficient forest cover, with researchers studying bear habitat and behavior to understand which factors regulate black bear numbers; they then applied this knowledge by altering hunting seasons accordingly and helping people change their attitudes about bears; this allowed the population to recover.
Since there have been no known bear attacks against humans since last August in West Virginia, people who feed bears may put both themselves and their property at risk by doing this, even unknowingly.
