This adult black bear (Ursus americanus), blonde phase, was likely struck by a vehicle some time ago. It appears it may have been hidden by the snow, the guardrail, and it is partly out of sight for the drivers because of the slope of the road bed. On the other side of the wildlife underpass (visible behind the bear), lies a dead cub, possibly hers. Wildlife underpasses and fences generally work very well for wildlife, including bears; they reduce road mortality and they provide safe crossing opportunities. However, black bears can climb wildlife fences that have large mesh size, especially if the fences have wooden poles. Therefore the most commonly used wildlife fences are not an absolute barrier to black bears. In this particular case the wildlife underpass has only limited fence length; you can see one of the fence ends in the image. Contiguous fencing may be more effective in keeping animals from accessing the road and in guiding wildlife to the safe crossing opportunities. However, this may not always be possible or desirable in multi-functional landscapes where access roads are frequent and cannot be blocked, and where landscape aesthetics may be a concern. Click here for more images of the two bears.

All content © 2012 Marcel Huijser

Decomposing carcass of a roadkilled black bear (Ursus americanus) adult (blonde color phase), behind a guard rail next to a wildlife underpass, Montana, USA