European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 09, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Saturday november 9, 1985 the stars and stripes Page 17 1. F Black Bear tracking Rife with Pitfalls by Barbara s. Moffet National geographic t he truck is perched on a Overlook that drops sharply tothe Valley. Beyond Rise the Southern appalachians the nearby peaks a Forest Green blending into successive scallops of Blue and then translucent Gray. A wide Antenna sprouting from a Hole in the truck s roof twirls in the Damp Mountain Breeze. Inside the truck a steady beep beep beep tells the scientist something the Eye cannot see there Are bears in these Woods at Pisgah National Forest. That one s Baldy declares research assistant Peggy Homer As she zeroes in on a signature beep with Antenna and Compass. He s right Over that  the nature of the beep indicates Baldy is on the move. If the signal is recording activity i like to imagine the Bear moving along nibbling blueberries Hornet says. If it records inactivity i think of the Bear curled up somewhere  Baldy is one of 17 Black bears now in a scientific study led by or. Roger a. Powell of North Carolina state University. To team about the bears ecology and use of territories Powell and his assistants have collared them with telemetric devices so that they can be tracked. The pro act partly funded by the National geographic society also will help determine How Many bears the Lores habitat can support. The Motl common Bear in North America Black bears Are afraid of people and rarely tangle with them. Exactly How Many Black bears dwell in Western North Carolina s Pisgah National Forest the not known but Powell thinks the number May be dropping. Many of the bears studied have been felled by Hunters Bohets there is no limit on the total Bear kill and some Are poached in the Sanctuary set up to protect them. Outside it. They Are fair game during Hunting season. A bad year for acorns can drive the bears out of the Sanctuary in search of food and bang they re hit says Mike Fritz a research assistant. Pro Greit Comet slowly in this Long term study which is also funded by Earth watch. The North Carolina wildlife resources commission and the University. Some months. The group s Only Contact with bears is the signal picked up by the telemetry truck that cruises the Blue Ridge Parkway often round the clock. The traps carefully Laid in the Remote forests lie empty the sardine Ball uneaten or snatched by a Clever Raccoon or opossum. But when a Bear does Spring a trap designed to hold its Paw painlessly the group moves with the dispatch of a Hospital emergency room team. As one worker dances to distract the Bear another Abs it with a dose of tranquil Olzer. After waiting at least 10 minutes the Bear is nudged to make sure it s truly asleep. Provoking no response the team moves in to record the animal s vital statistics. Al Lnch Olding it to protect its eyes they measure nearly every part of the Bear s body draw some blood and pull a Small tooth to learn the Bear s age. The animal is tattooed with a number and outfitted with a radio transmitter. All the bears receive shots of penicillin to Light infection. Some bears prove More  than others. The most memorable Effort of research assistant John Zimmerman involved a Mother Bear called Glady and three cubs that were wintering in a hollow Oak tree. He Black Bear in North America Ai Forat have shrunk 10 have Bluet by am. North ctr Ina protect hits no Tutor i Luch Ai one in the i Lgth not on Fortis f the Eft  study of the Zimmerman wanted to learn about the bears Winter physiology it is different from that of other hibernate is. After determining that Glady had entered the tree from a Hole 15 feet off the ground he took a crash course in rope climbing rigged a Pulley system and was hoisted into the tree. Glady Lay curled up below him her cubs tucked into her fur. After tranquil izing the Mother Zimmerman was lowered toward her feet first. Knowing your foot s going to tap her on the top of her head is pretty on la  of la d and m of d " it r "tdsldlrxd.fing,. The. By focus. On in. Block for. A of few fori.  he recalls. Held by a harness he reached Down and pulled out each month old cub. They Weie at the clinging stage and they just attached immediately to my shirt he says. Zimmerman handed each cub to co workers on the ground who quickly measured and weighed them. As i handed the third cub Down the tree rumbled. I thought the Mother had awakened. But we listened again and she was Only  the team was Able to replace the cubs before the Mother Bear woke up. In Spring and summer a Day in the he of a male Bear at Pisgah might go like this at Dawn s first Light the Bear is up and foraging alone for berries leaves roots Carrion. Insects or Honey. Black Bear Are adapted to take advantage of any new food source they can  says Powell. Because they Are so opportunistic there is nothing abnormal about their visiting dumps or raiding  Pisgah bears however rarely do. Unlike those at Yellowstone National Park where Hunting is not allowed bears of Pisgah apparently have come to ear people. From about 11 30 . To 3 30 pm. The Bear takes a siesta usually under a Rock shelter or in a Rhododendron Thicket. Then it s time to resume foraging which continues until the Bear goes to sleep about Midnight. Homer thinks each Bear has a Hall dozen regular sleeping spots. In the fall boars Are Busy eating acorns in anticipation of Winter. Winter Means Denning retiring to a hollow tree or Cave to sleep. But unlike other hibernate is the Black Bear s body temperature and metabolic rate drop Only a Little. I Don t know anything else that can go that Long without eating urinating or defecating while keeping a High metabolic rate Powell observes