June, 2025

Check social media today and among the stories your Saugerties neighbors are sharing are exciting (and possibly concerning) photos and stories about the many bear sightings going on in the Town and Village of Saugerties.

If you need some good advice about how to live responsibly with your black bear neighbors, you're in luck.  There are a number of good resources that will give you quick insights into how you and your family can avoid human-bear conflicts.

Do you know what to do and how to behave if you see a black bear in your vicinity?  If not, a good, quick read is the advice put together by the U.S. Association of Fish and Wildlife agencies called BearWise.  It was developed by bear biologist experts and gives you quick basics about reducing your chances of attracting a bear to your locale, and safety tips when recreating outdoors.

Here's the NYS DEC link to that information: https://dec.ny.gov/nature/animals-fish-plants/black-bear/management/bearwise

Additional helpful information

• Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies "BearWise" page - The NY BearWise page linked up above covers many of these same points, but you may find some benefit in perusing this national page.
• Be BearWise At Home Checklist - A 2-page checklist to help assess how BearWise you are.
• Be BearWise - 4 Flyers:
  - 6 At-Home BearWise Basics
  - 6 Outdoor BearWise Basics
  - BearWise Outdoor Safety Tips
  - BearWise Vacation Tips
• Flyer - Attract Birds, Not Bears - 2 pages of advice regarding trade-offs, involving bird feeders, which can be "bear magnets"
• Flyer - Dogs + Bears = Problems - 2-pages that cover the possibly enhanced problems when you and your dog(s) encounter a bear.  Includes the time-honored good advice - "Don't force a mother black bear to defend her cubs". 
  
  Fun (or not-so-fun) fact - Dogs were involved in more than half of the incidents involving people and black bears between 2010 – 2015.