JACKSON, Wyo. — The month of May means that most black bears have emerged from their winter slumber in Grand Teton National Park (GTNP).
Buckrail photographer Nick Sulzer captured an approximately four-year-old cinnamon-colored black bear contemplating a spruce tree climb, just outside of GTNP, on Tuesday, May 17.
Black bears aren’t always black; their coats can be a variety of colors, including cinnamon, black, brown and beige.
This playful bear was born to be an excellent tree climber, because its shorter, curved claws are well-suited for gripping bark. Black bears use their back legs to push themselves up a tree, and unlike other tree climbers, will climb down a tree with their rear legs in the lead.
According to the North American Bear Center, it is thought that black bears mark trees to communicate with other bears through scent-marking. Black bears will mark trees by clawing them, and bears of of all ages and sexes will rub their scent on trees. Black bears also rub trees to seek relief from a hard-to-reach itch.
According to the U.S. Forest Service, black bears breed in June and July, and cubs are born in the winter den. They enter their dens in October or November, and emerge in late April or May. They are not true hibernators, but go into a deep sleep in the winter. Black bears are omnivorous, and feed primarily on plants, berries, small mammals and insects.
Black bears are less aggressive than grizzly bears, but they can be driven to aggression if threatened, especially a sow with her cubs.
