Black Bears

Conservation Challenges

Human Wildlife Conflict

When residents and visitors leave food out or easily accessible, it causes conflict with bears that can lead to the death of a bear or a human. Black bears are omnivores and can be opportunistic when it comes to finding food -- food left in cars, homes, vacation rentals, or poorly secured trash cans is an easy choice for a hungry bear. When bears become habituated to human food, conflict arises and can tragically result in bears being euthanized. These naturally shy animals are being pushed into further conflict as human development destroys forest corridors, and wildfires force the bears out of the woods and into neighborhoods. Lastly, car strikes on mountain roads that kill or orphan black bears are becoming more prevalent.

Climate Change

Wildfires in black bear habitats have caused bears and other wildlife to become injured. If paw pads get burned, bears cannot walk; therefore, they cannot find food or water. When a mother bear is killed in a fire, it is difficult for a very young cub to survive. As fires burn through bear habitat, bears and other wildlife are forced out of the mountains at increased rates as they desperately search for food or water.

Oakland Zoo is Taking Action for the Black Bear

Project Support

Oakland Zoo sponsors the Bear League’s Mat Deterrent Program as well as an engaging and interactive “coffee table book” currently in design to help educate visitors (and residents) about bears and bear safety.  

Veterinary Care

Oakland Zoo provides state-of-the-art wildlife veterinary care for sick, injured, burned, or orphaned wild black bears through a long-standing partnership with California Department of Fish and Wildlife. The zoo’s veterinary team is poised to respond to a bear medical emergency. Oakland Zoo is dedicated to giving black bears the care they need at these critical times. Oakland Zoo will also care for a bear that has been injured and needs to be skillfully cared for before being relocated to a safe territory. 

Community Engagement

Oakland Zoo shares conservation issues facing black bears and empowering solutions to conserve them to the public through a variety of channels: Docents and Volunteers, Teen Wild Guides, education programs, events, exhibits, campaigns, Keeper Talks, and media stories. Oakland Zoo also celebrates bears and the conservation work being done to ensure their survival with special events at the zoo.

Leadership Training and Staff Expertise

‍Oakland Zoo provides yearly professional development training for field partners, offering them a myriad of staff skills and resources to enhance conservation efforts

Forever Homes

Oakland Zoo’s California Trail features a family of black bears with a special backstory: after becoming habituated to humans, a mother and her cubs began entering neighborhood homes in search of food, creating a serious human-wildlife conflict. By working with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Oakland Zoo was able to provide a “forever home” for this bear family, which prevented the bears from being euthanized.

Taking Action for Black Bears: You Can Too!

• JOIN the BEAR League. 
• CALL 530-525-PAWS (7297), a 24/7 hotline, if you are concerned about a bear.

• REDUCE or eliminate the attraction of human food sources using tightly closed trash containers (bear-proof) and dumpsters. Clean up after outdoor cooking, and store food out of bears’ reach.
  

• STAY SAFE by keeping windows, doors, and pet doors closed in bear territory.
  

• NEVER FEED a bear. Feeding bears makes them become a nuisance, which can threaten its life.
  

• DRIVE SAFELY and slowly on mountain roads to prevent collisions with bears.