Today bears have a growing people-problem: their “backyards” are full of humans and people-provided food is everywhere. Discover practical solutions and real-world examples of how to prevent conflicts at home and at play so we can do a better job of sharing space with these intelligent, adaptable animals. Contents - Understanding Bears and Bear Behavior - Bear-Proofing Your Home - Being Bear-Smart in the Outdoors - Attractant Management: Garbage, Bird Feeders, Fruit Trees, Beehives, Chicken Coops, Gardens, and more - Creating Bear-Smart Communities - Preventing Conflicts - Responding to Encounters and Attacks - A Bear Manager’s World - Case Studies from the U.S. & Canada - North American Bear Populations, Extensive Resources For homeowners, communities, wildlife managers, educators, and anyone who spends time in the great outdoors.

In A Shape in the Dark, wilderness guide and lifelong Alaskan Bjorn Dihle weaves personal experience with historical and contemporary accounts to explore the world of brown bears--from encounters with the Lewis and Clark Expedition, frightening attacks including the famed death of Timothy Treadwell, the controversies related to bear hunting, the animal’s place in native cultures, and the impacts on the species from habitat degradation and climate change. Much more than a report on human-bear interactions, this compelling story intimately explores our relationship with one of the world’s most powerful predators. An authentic and thoughtful work, it blends outdoor adventure, history, and elements of memoir to present a mesmerizing portrait of Alaska’s brown bears and grizzlies, informed by the species’ larger history and their fragile future.

Living with Wild Bears in Alaska "A heart-stopping eco-adventure, a testimony to both the grizzlies and their courageous protector." --People "The grizzly bear is one of a very few animals remaining on earth that can kill a human in physical combat. It can decapitate with a single swipe or grotesquely disfigure a person in rapid order. Within the last wilderness areas where they dwell, they are the undisputed king of all beasts. I know this very well. My name is Timothy Treadwell, and I live with the wild grizzly. . . ." After Timothy Treadwell nearly died from a heroin overdose, he sought healing far from the trappings of civilization--among wild grizzlies on the remote Alaskan coast. Without gun, two-way radio, or experience living in the wild, armed only with the love and respect he felt for these majestic animals, Treadwell set up camp surrounded by one of nature's most terrifying and fascinating forces of nature. Here is the story of his astonishing adventures with grizzlies: soothing aggressive adolescents, facing down thousand-pound males, swimming with mothers and cubs, surviving countless brushes with death, earning their trust and acceptance. In these incredible pages, Treadwell lives a life no human has ever attempted, and ultimately saves his own. To share his experience is awesome, harrowing, and unforgettable. "LIKE AFRICA NATURALIST JANE GOODALL, TREADWELL GIVES PERSONAL NAMES TO HIS SUBJECTS. . . . Bears have distinct personalities, Treadwell shows, and as a group, individual roles become clearly defined by gender, size, and age." --The Seattle Times With twenty-nine photographs

A natural history and celebration of the famous bears and salmon of Brooks River. On the Alaska Peninsula, where exceptional landscapes are commonplace, a small river attracts attention far beyond its scale. Each year, from summer to early fall, brown bears and salmon gather at Brooks River to create one of North America’s greatest wildlife spectacles. As the salmon leap from the cascade, dozens of bears are there to catch them (with as many as forty-three bears sighted in a single day), and thousands of people come to watch in person or on the National Park Service’s popular Brooks Falls Bearcam. The Bears of Brooks Falls tells the story of this region and the bears that made it famous in three parts. The first forms an ecological history of the region, from its dormancy 30,000 years ago to the volcanic events that transformed it into the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes. The central and longest section is a deep dive into the lives of the wildlife along the Brooks River, especially the bears and salmon. Readers will learn about the bears’ winter hibernation, mating season, hunting rituals, migration patterns, and their relationship with Alaska’s changing environment. Finally, the book explores the human impact, both positive and negative, on this special region and its wild population.

Young readers will enjoy this three-book collection that is a part of the Living Lights™ series of Berenstain Bears books. Children will learn biblical values, morals, and invaluable life lessons. Included in the timeless collection you’ll find The Berenstain Bears God Bless Our Home, The Berenstain Bears All Things Bright and Beautiful, and The Berenstain Bears Gets Involved. The Berenstain Bears Bear Country Blessings—part of the popular Zonderkidz Living Lights series of books—is perfect for: Early readers ages 4-8 Reading out loud in classrooms, during story time, and at home or bedtime Birthday gifts, Easter, holiday gift giving, or as a new addition to your e-library Sparking authentic conversations about biblical values, the importance of morals and ethics, and how to create a loving home The Berenstain Bears Bear Country Blessings is an addition to the Living Lights™ series that: Features the hand-drawn artwork of the Berenstain family Continues in the much-loved footsteps of Stan and Jan Berenstain in this Berenstain Bears series of books Is part of one of the bestselling children’s book series ever created, with more than 250 books published and nearly 300 million copies sold to date

An absorbing first-hand account of living with bears, from the acclaimed author of The Spirit Bear. To many people, grizzlies are symbols of power and ferocity -- creatures to be feared and, too often, killed. But Charlie Russell, who has had a forty-year relationship with bears, holds the controversial belief that it is possible to live with and truly understand bears in the wild. And for five years now, Russell and his partner, artist and photographer Maureen Enns, have spent summers on the Kamchatka peninsula, located on the northeast coast of Russia, and home of the densest population of brown bears in the world. Grizzly Heart tells the remarkable story of how Russell and Enns have defied the preconceptions of wildlife officials and the general public by living unthreatened -- and respected -- among the grizzlies of Kamchatka. In an honest and immediate style, Russell tells of the trials and successes of their years in the field, from convincing Russian officials to allow them to study, to adopting three bear cubs left orphaned when their mother was killed by a hunter (and teaching these cubs how to survive in the wild), to raising environmental awareness through art. Through a combination of careful study and personal dedication, Russell and Enns are persuading people to reconsider the age-old image of the grizzly bear as a ferocious man-eater and perpetual threat. Through their actions, they demonstrate that it is possible to forge a mutually respectful relationship with these majestic giants, and provide compelling reasons for altering our culture. "We have been able to live beautifully with these animals, with no serious threat, because of what we've learned. Hopefully, sharing what we learn will help people -- and be a big help to our bears, too."

Long ago we invited bears into our stories, our dreams, our nightmares, our lives. We have always sought them out where they live, for their hides, their meat, their beauty, their knowingness. Human country and bear country exist side by side. As Sherry Simpson suggests, the relationship between bears and humans is ancient and ongoing and, in Alaska, profoundly and often uncomfortably close. A huge number of North America’s bears live in Alaska: including at least 31,000 brown bears, 100,000 black bears, and 3,500 polar bears. And nearly every aspect of Alaskan society reflects their presence, from hunting to tourism marketing to wildlife management to urban planning. A long-time Alaskan, Simpson offers a series of compelling essays on Alaskan bears in both wild and urban spaces—because in Alaska, bears are found not only in their natural habitat but also in cities and towns. Combining field research, interviews, and a host of up-to-date scientific sources, her finely polished prose conveys a wealth of information and insight on ursine biology, behavior, feeding, mating, social structure, and much more. Simpson crisscrosses the Alaskan landscape in pursuit of bears as she muses, marvels, and often stands in sheer awe before these charismatic creatures. Firmly grounded in the expertise of wildlife biologists, hunters, and viewing guides, she shows bears as they actually are, not as we imagine them to be. She considers not only the occasionally aggressive behavior bears need to survive, but also the violence exacted upon them by trophy hunters, advocates of predator control, or suburbanites who view bears as land sharks that threaten the safety of their families. Shifting effortlessly between fascinating facts and poetic imagery, Simpson crafts an extended meditation on why we are so drawn to bears and why they continue to engage our imaginations, populate indigenous mythologies, and help define our essential visions of wilderness. As Simpson observes, “The slightest evidence that bears share your world—or that you share theirs—can alter not only your sense of the landscape, but your sense of yourself within that landscape.”