Drought has bears roaming

Watch it. Bears are out -- one more sign that drought is starting to take hold in the Lowcountry.

Two black bears have been spotted recently crossing roads in Berkeley County, among more than 10 sightings so far this year in Berkeley and Charleston counties. Another was spotted in Holly Hill just over the Orangeburg County line. The sightings are among a rash in South and North Carolina that is being blamed on dry conditions.

That's not all. Wildlife biologists say residents might see more snakes, raccoons and other animals because of the drought, especially after brief rains.

Drought makes scarcer the nuts, berries and insects that are much of what a black bear eats. The bruins, who normally keep to deep woods, will go farther to find food. That means homeowners near wooded areas might look out their window to see a 300-pound hunk of muscle and fur dragging off grills, bird feeders, pet food and garbage, or mauling a garden.

In fact, deer and any number of other species will be out in the gardens more often.

"Droughts change animals' behavior, or their daily behavior patterns, somewhat," said Steve Bennett, S.C. Department of Natural Resources herpetologist. They hunker down to escape the heat, then track beyond their normal range to find water and food. "When you have that rainfall event, everybody moves at once."

Both the Berkeley County bear sightings were in late May -- one on S.C. Highway 41 near Jamestown, the other on Black Tom Road near Wassamassaw Swamp between Moncks Corner and Jedburg. On June 2, a black bear scampered across Roy Gilmore Park near downtown Holly Hill.

A week earlier, a black bear was caught rummaging a chicken coop in a West Asheville, N.C., downtown neighborhood. A week later, residents found a black bear in a downtown Rock Hill neighborhood.

Upstate counties are on track to report a record number of bear sightings so far this year, said Deanna Ruth, DNR wildlife biologist. Bears are turning up earlier in the season in mid-state communities like Sumter. Unfortunately, the state is also on track for a record number of road kills, she said.

A few hundred black bears are estimated to live in the coastal counties among more than 1,000 in the state. Most of them are found above the Santee River in Williamsburg, Georgetown and Horry counties and in the mountainous Upstate counties. But on the coast, a sustained population also lives in Berkeley, Charleston and Dorchester counties.

Bears have been documented in every county in the state except Bamberg.

As of early June, the entire state has been declared in incipient drought by the state's drought committee, with rainfall levels half or less than normal since January. Incipient means there is the threat of drought.

Bear sightings statewide doubled or more from 2006 to 2009 for a number of reasons, including lingering effects of the five-year drought that ended a few years earlier, said Sam Chappelear, DNR regional wildlife coordinator. Sightings peaked in 2008 at more than 450 statewide, including more than 100 in coastal counties, according to DNR charts.

A van struck and killed a black bear in 2008 on Interstate 26 between Summerville and Jedburg. A woman in Awendaw looked out of her window to find a black bear staring back in 2004. It had been rummaging through her garbage.

Reach Bo Petersen at 937-5744.