I was just reading an article on bears and how their population has exploded in NJ. Despite this there are few if any bears in the pine barrens. I guess it's as simple as there's just not enough food in the pine barrens to sustain them. I wonder though, what are bears eating in North Jersey that's not in the pine barrens?
Also have any of you old timers ever seen a bear in the pine barrens? I know here's a sign at Batso that says you are entering bear country but I never hear about anyone seeing them around here.
I'm going to attribute this to mostly two factors. The first being out competed by a non native species, the coyote. Coyotes are omnivorous and so have much of the same good sources that bears have. Coyotes pack up, so they have strength in numbers. Black bears are poor predators, coyotes are not. Considering the advantage in numbers, it's unlikely a black bear will steal a kill. Black bears hibernate and are most in need of abundant food sources around the time of autumn. Not really a time when plant foods are abundant in the pines. The coyotes are active year round, meaning they will have first access to food sources at the time the bears are coming out of hibernation.
Second is probably some of the characteristics of the pines. The sugar sand makes poor dens. The bears may also not be accustomed to the acidic tanic waters. Bears are like us, they want to avoid bushwhacking and are known to make use of the trail systems we create. The thick understory probably puts them off, it's not like the much clearer understory of mountainous forest areas. I rarely ever see honey bees in the pines. Instead I see plenty of wood boring bees. I don't think the calorie packed honey is much of a resource in the pines. That's my two cents.
