Trouble A”Bruin”

Black bears add an element of danger to any deer hunt.  Walking to your stand isn’t quite the same if you have a trail camera picture of a large sow and cubs in the area.  Yes, bears usually run from humans, but a stealth-like trek through the woods could easily create an encounter.  Overturned logs and piles of bear scat are sure signs of a bear’s presence, but a camera image is the best way to know the number of bears, their size, and their sex.

Curiosity Killed the Camera

Black bears are curious animals that can quickly become destructive.  I had an elevated box blind built deep in the woods on our hunt club, and the structure wasn’t there for more than a month before a black bear broke out a window in the door and crawled in.  Luckily, there was no internal damage except for the $100 window I had to replace.  I attached a camera 12 feet above the ground, and a bear climbed the steps (leaving claw marks) and messed with the camera.

No-Bear Options

Two ways to reduce bear damage to cameras are to use them in “dark mode,” where no visible red flash is seen, and to put the camera on daylight mode so that the infrared flash is not detected.  The pictures above are from a Stealth Cam Revolver 360 posted in a saddle with no minerals or food nearby.  It is so well camouflaged that I must hunt for it despite knowing exactly where it is posted.  Nonetheless, this black bear found it and tried to rip it from the tree.  However, the youngster didn’t count on the six-way imaging of the Revolver 360, and its image was captured despite being upside down.

No Harm Done

I have had bears bite the camera and tear off the antenna.  Luckily, this youngster didn’t do either.  The large ears give this bear away as a two-year-old.  It may have been passing through or perhaps will establish a home area.  Either way, my camera will tell the tale.