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Biota
Ursus americanus floridanus
EOL Text
Comments: Primarily nocturnal. May be dormant in winter for periods ranging from a few days to several months; pregnant females remain inactive in dens for minimum of 3-4 months; males and barren females spend less time in hibernation (Wooding and Hardisky 1992, Maehr and Wooding 1992).
Breeds apparently in June-July. Implantation is delayed about four months (also reported as 5-6 months). Gestation lasts 7-7.5 months (average 220 days). Females give birth every two years at most. Young are born January-February, stay with mother until fall of second year. Litter size usually is 2-4. Females generally first give birth at 3-4 years. As in the southern Appalachians, productivity and survival of young may be enhanced when fall food (especially hard mast) supply is favorable (A89EIL01NA).
United States
Rounded National Status Rank: N2 - Imperiled
Rounded Global Status Rank: T2 - Imperiled
Reasons: Occurs widely but discontinuously in Florida and adjacent parts of Georgia and Alabama; historically more numerous than at present; habitat destruction/fragmentation is a major issue; the four remaining viable populations do not appear to be significantly threatened for the foreseeable future.
Other Considerations: Population densities are generally low. Individuals require very large home ranges. Healthy populations need vast, undisturbed tracts. Wide-ranging movements lead to highway mortality.
Global Short Term Trend: Decline of 10-30%
Comments: Four populations appear to be viable and secure for the foreseeable future: Apalachicola National Forest, Ocala National Forest, Okefenokee NWR-Osceola National Forest, and Big Cypress National Preserve (USFWS 1998). Eglin AFB population appears to be stable, but management may be necessary in the future to keep the population viable (USFWS 1998).
Global Range: (250-20,000 square km (about 100-8000 square miles)) Historical range was mainly in Florida but extended into coastal plain areas of Georgia, Alabama, and extreme southeastern Mississippi (Hall 1981, USFWS 1998). Currently the range includes Florida and Georgia, with a small population in Alabama (USFWS 1998). Remaining viable populations are centered on Apalachicola National Forest, Ocala National Forest, Okefenokee NWR-Osceola National Forest, and Big Cypress National Preserve (USFWS 1998).
Degree of Threat: B : Moderately threatened throughout its range, communities provide natural resources that when exploited alter the composition and structure of the community over the long-term, but are apparently recoverable
Comments: Habitat loss and fragmentation are major threats in the historical range, but not for the four major remaining populations. Much habitat has been and is being lost to expanding urbanization, agricultural development, and increasing recreational use of wildlands (Maehr and Wooding 1992). Small Alabama population in shrinking habitat shows signs of excessive inbreeding and could be extirpated in the near future (USFWS 1998). Hunting has been eliminated as a significant threat (USFWS 1998); now restricted to the five counties surrounding the Okefenokee Swamp in Georgia. Illegal persecution by beekeepers, poachers, timbermen, farmers, etc., may be a problem in some areas. Highway mortality has been significant (250 bears were killed on Florida highways from 1976 to 1991), particularly in the Florida peninsula. However, USFWS (1998) concluded that illegal killing and highway mortality currently are not significant threats, though the bear is sensitive to excessive mortality due to its low reproductive rate (Maehr and Wooding 1992).
The Florida black bear, Ursus americanus floridanus, is a distinct subspecies of the American black bear and the only bear that lives in Florida. These bears originally ranged throughout Florida, southern Georgia and southern Alabama. Their distribution is now mainly restricted to several discontinuous managed core areas including land around Eglin Air Force Base; Apalachicola, Osceola and Ocala National Forests; St. Johns River watershed; and Big Cypress National Park. Optimally, their habitat includes a mix of flatwoods, swamp, scrub oak ridges, bayheads and hammock habitats, where they can access dense cover. Bears travel for food sources and to find home ranges. An adult male’s home range is about 50-120 square miles in size.
Florida black bears have shiny black or brown coats, occasionally with a blond patch on their chest, and a brown snout. The largest of Florida’s terrestrial mammals, they are 5-6 feet (1.5-1.8 m) long from snout to tail, and measure 3 feet (1 m) high at the top of their front flank. Males typically weigh 250-350 pounds (113-160 kg), females are smaller at 130-180 pounds (60-80 kg). Females mature at age 3-4. After mating in June-July, females give birth to litters of 1-4 tiny (12 oz; 340 g) and undeveloped cubs in January-February. Females generally hole up in their den through the winter after cubs are born. Cubs stay with mother for their first 18 months. This means females usually breed only every other year. While they can live up to 30 years, most Florida black bears live less than 20 years, and 25% of cubs don’t live past their first year. The most common cause of death is vehicle collisions as bears cross highways.
In the wild, Florida black bears are shy and secretive and rarely seen. Primarily nocturnal, Florida black bears forage at night. As omnivorous opportunists, they enjoy a diverse diet including nuts and fruit such as acorns, berries, saw palmetto and sabal palm fruits, grasses, insects, honey. More rarely they eat meat from armadillos, deer, raccoons, and wild pigs. In human inhabited areas bears will habituate to eating food from garbage cans. As their habitat shrinks due to spread of human habitation, more human-bear encounters occur. Although they don’t technically hibernate, in winter months, Florida bears go into a “wintering” period, during which they rarely eat or leave the den.
Florida black bears are important part of their ecosystem. Considered an “indicator species,” their population size and health reflects the overall health of the ecosystem. They also are classified as an “umbrella species.” This means that they require a large and diverse habitat containing many species. Protecting Florida black bear habitat thus protects the habitats for many other plants and animals included in their varied range.
When Spanish explorers arrived in Florida at the end of the 15th century it is thought that the Florida black bear population numbered 11,000 individuals. By 1974, this number had dwindled to 300 individuals, primarily due to hunting and habitat loss to expanding urbanization, agriculture, and wild land recreational use. At this time, the state of Florida listed the species as threatened. Under this protection the population has rebounded to an estimated 1000-3000 bears, and its protected status was withdrawn in 2012. For the first time in 21 years, the Florida Wildlife Commission approved a week-long bear hunting season in October 2015, despite public opposition. The goal was to managing subpopulations by culling numbers. After two days, the hunt was halted, as the quota of 300 individuals was reached well before expected.
(Bray 2015; Collier County Government 2005; FWC 2015a,b; Maehr and Brady 1984; Natureserve 2015; USDA Forest Service 2009).
- Bray, R. 2015. Florida black bear. Southwest Florida water management district. Watershed excursion of the springs coast. Retrieved November 11, 2015 from https://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/education/interactive/springscoast/blackbear.shtml
- Collier County Government, 2005. Florida black bear (Ursus americanus floridanus). Retrieved November 11, 2015 from https://www.colliergov.net/index.aspx?page=428.
- Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), 2015a. Florida black bear. Retrieved November 11, 2015 from myfwc.com/media/2211839/Florida-Black-Bear.pdf.
- Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), 2015b. Black Bear: Ursus americanus floridanus. Retrieved November 11, 2015 from myfwc.com/wildlifehabitats/profiles/mammals/land/black-bear/
- Maehr, D.S. and Brady, J.R. 1984. Food habits of Florida black bears. The Journal of wildlife management 48(1):230-235.
- Natureserve 2015. NatureServe Explorer: An online encyclopedia of life[web application]. Version 7.1. NatureServe, Arlington, Virginia. Retrieved November 11, 2015 from explorer.natureserve.org/servlet/NatureServe?searchName=Ursus+americanus+floridanus
- USDA Forest Service 2009. Be bear aware: The Florida black bear fact sheet. Retrieved November 12 2015 from www.fs.usda.gov/internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb5192598.pdf
License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ |
Rights holder/Author | Dana Campbell, Dana Campbell |
Source | No source database. |
Management Requirements: Intense forestry practices involving even-age timber management over large areas probably reduce habitat suitability for bears (Maehr and Wooding 1992). Large-scale winter burning may reduce food resource diversity by increasing saw palmetto and reducing blueberry and runner oak; summer burning may encourage the latter species and should be considered in managing areas occupied by bears (Maehr and Wooding 1992). Beeyards can be protected through the use of a well-maintained electric fence in conjunction with a trap-and-release program (see Maehr and Wooding 1992).
Limited sport hunting where populations would not be adversely affected could be helpful in generating support (among hunters) for maintaining, protecting, and reestablishing bear populations (Layne 1978). In large areas of suitable habitat, apparently can sustain regulated annual fall harvests (Maehr and Wooding 1992).
Highway underpasses for bears should be installed along major movement corridors. In 1994, an experimental underpass was built on S.R. 46 in Florida; the state is radio-monitoring bears to determine their use of this prototype, which could help reduce the number of road kills.
Management Research Needs: Better information is needed on suitable management techniques, habitat requirements, home range, and the minimum area needed to sustain a viable population. We need to determine the location of major movement corridors and highway crossings.
endemic to a single nation