Location: A Bear-habituated community in Sussex County, New Jersey
Collaborators: New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife, East Stroudsburg University
Funders: Bear Trust International, Hudson Farm, New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife, East Stroudsburg University, and a wonderful charitable foundation that wishes to remain anonymous
Project Duration: 2008-2011 and beyond
Overview of the New Jersey Project:
In many communities in New Jersey, bear-human conflicts are significant and ongoing. In addition to helping one bear-habituated community become bear-resistant, Bear Trust is collaborating with the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife and East Stroudsburg University to conduct scientific research to measure the efficacy of installing wildlife-resistant containers. This is important because conservation and management actions should be based on sound science. Currently, the scientific and management communities do not know how bears respond to the installation of wildlife-resistant dumpsters in real-life situations. Do bears stop frequenting areas when wildlife-resistant containers are installed? Do bears begin or increase behaviors such as breaking into homes and vehicles? As the interface between humans and wildlife increases, the answers to these questions will have significant implications for wildlife management and community planning.
Research Plan for the New Jersey Project:
This research includes treatment dumpsters (wildlife-resistant dumpsters) and control dumpsters (regular dumpsters), as well as pre-treatment and post-treatment data. The New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife, and a master’s student from East Stroudsburg University, trapped research bears during spring 2008 and attached satellite collars. They tracked bear movements throughout 2008 (i.e., pre-treatment data). During February, 2009, we installed bear-resistant, retro-fitted lids for 25 dumpsters in the study area. Bear movements have been tracked during 2009, after wildlife-resistant capability was achieved in half of the study area (i.e., post-treatment data). In addition, bear activity at both treatment and control dumpsters has been monitored using motion-sensitive cameras during both 2008 and 2009.
To see a short video of a bear at a dumpster in summer 2008, click on photo below:
Our research study also includes a survey which measures the success of installing wildlife-resistant containers in terms of human dimensions. We delivered the first round of the survey in 2008, before bear-resistant capability was achieved. We delivered the second round of the survey in 2009, after bear-resistant capability was achieved. Data are currently being analyzed and results from Phase I of the research will be disseminated in fall 2010.
Currently, we are deploying Phase II of the New Jersey Project. We are providing bear-resistant containers (in phases) to the remaining half of study area that currently has regular dumpsters. Simultaneously, we will continue conducting research to determine how bears respond behaviorally as more and more areas in the study community become bear-resistant.
Education Component of the New Jersey Project:
Bear Trust is deeply committed to education. One goal of the New Jersey Project is to educate children by engaging them with innovative education opportunities.
The Education Program will be rooted in ongoing research and conservation in New Jersey. It will provide educators with a place-based and scientifically accurate curriculum to help develop students’ awareness, knowledge and skills for bear conservation in the East and beyond.
The curriculum will consist of grade-level appropriate lessons and supplementary materials that meet state and national science standards. Lessons will be designed to encourage student inquiry, use real data collected in the project area, and reflect the diversity of the targeted students and communities.
The Education Program will encompass three areas of concentration: 1) lessons based on field science using data from wild research bears, 2) lessons based on human dimensions science using survey data, and, 3) a lesson demonstrating the economic and ecological effects of using hunting as a conservation tool. We are tailoring the Education Program to each of the following four groups: 1) K-2nd grades, 2) 3rd-5th grades, 3) 6th-8th grades, and, 4) 9th-12th grades.
The Education Program will be available for implementation in Spring, 2011.
Goals for the New Jersey Project:
The project in New Jersey will meet the following goals: 1) address the issue of bear-human conflicts, 2) increase human safety and decrease probability of bear mortality by decreasing the number of bears that become habituated to humans and garbage, 3) provide scientific information regarding how bears respond to wildlife-resistant containers in real-life situations, 5) provide innovative education opportunities for children, 6) foster community participation, and, 7) serve as a model for other communities that exist in bear habitat.
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