BEAR INVASION SPREADS TO
ROXBOROUGH VILLAGE

Colorado Department of Wildlife officials reported 15 new bear sightings in Roxorough Village during the morning hours of Friday, June 25.  Over 20 sightings of bears in Roxborough Park have been reported in recent days.  This Special Edition chronicles one such bear invasion in a Roxborough Park home. It seeks to provide information on the major proliferation of bears this year (the greatest in memory) and what can be done to discourage and prevent damage and possible injury.  As one resident commented, "The bears are really cute--but they can be dangerous."

At left is a snapshot of the captured bear at 5655 Indian Paint Run in Roxborough Park.  He is desperately trying to claw his way out of the cage placed by the Division of Wildlife.  Unfortunately, he will be euthanized--the second Roxborough bear to be "put down" in recent days.  Read on for "Shirley's Story" to find out why this happened and how to avoid this outcome in your family

SHIRLEY LANKFORD'S BIG BEAR ADVENTURE

Shirley Lankford had a small trash can below her deck at 5655 Indian Paint Run in Roxborough Park.  She was not aware that such a small receptacle might attract local wildlife. She noticed that  that the trash can was disturbed around Memorial Day.  This was followed by other disturbances on her upper deck that involved Hummingbird nectar. 

On Wednesday afternoon, Shirley returned home, entered her kitchen through her garage door, and, much to her surprise and shock, found a sub-adult bear (about one year old and weighing 100 pounds), sitting on her kitchen floor enjoying a five-pound bag of peanuts.  He had also spread garbage around from an undersink container and had invaded her nearby pantry for other goodies.  Shirley screamed and the bear quickly exited--through her kitchen window and screen. 

'ENOUGH IS ENOUGH'--RON CALLS THE DEPARTMENT OF WILDLIFE

Realizing that this intrepid bear posed a hazard, Ron Coloccia contacted the Department Wildlife, hoping that the young bear could be captured and then transported to a location in the wilderness where he would not disturb residential areas. Department of Wildlife District Wildlife Manager Jerrie McKee, visited Shirley and Ron, and with a tear in her eye, said that the bear must be captured and euthanized because it had an indelible imprint of their home, made several visits,  and had entered the property.  Arrangements were made for a trap to be placed.

At right, Shirley Lankford and Ron Coloccia, residents at 5655 Indian Paint Run, in a calmer moment after the Bear Adventure.

QUICK RESPONSE BY THE
DEPARTMENT OF WILDLIFE

Expecting another visit by the determined bear, Wildlife Manager Jerrie McKee arranged for a trap to be placed at the residence.  The trap, which appears to be a large, over size outdoor barbecue unit, was baited and the waiting process began.  Nearby resident Paula Scirati reported she heard noise between 1 and 3 AM early Friday morning and believes it was the capture of the bear.

DOW Wildlife District Manager Jerrie McKee, with her right hand resting on the bear trap (with the bear inside trying desperately to free himself) discusses what homeowners must do to avoid incursions of their property.  The bear was taken away and "put down."

AMAZING FACTS ABOUT OUR LOCAL BEARS
FROM THE DEPT. OF WILDLIFE

Bears are intelligent, resourceful and amazing animals.
- Black is a species, not a color. In Colorado many black bears are blonde, cinnamon or brown.
- Over 90% of a bear's natural diet is grasses, berries, fruits, nuts and plants. The rest is primarily insects and scavenged carcasses. 
- Black bears are naturally shy, and very wary of people and other unfamiliar things. Their normal response to any perceived danger is to run away.
- In Colorado, most bears are active from mid-March through early November. When food sources dwindle they head for winter dens.
- With a nose that's 100 times more sensitive than ours, a bear can literally smell food five miles away.
- Bears are very smart, and have great memories-once they find food, they come back for more.
- During late summer and early fall bears need 20,000 calories a day to gain enough weight to survive the winter without eating or drinking. 
- Bears are not naturally nocturnal, but sometimes travel at night in hopes of avoiding humans.

Please check out and download this helpful information online at www.wildlife.state.co.us/bears.
 
If you do not have internet access, or would like to talk with someone about living in bear country, please call the DOW at 303-291-7227. 
 
Both the DOW and the Douglas County Sheriff's Office ask Roxborough residents to take all the necessary steps to bear-proof their homes and help ensure the safety of the public, as well as the bears.  Be a good neighbor and as assist your elderly neighbors to this end, as well as encourage others to clean up attractants around their home.

This is the second bear in Roxborough Park that had to be euthanized.  Earlier, on June 18, the kitchen in the Ockey residence on Old Ranch Trail was entered by a bear that attacked the refrigerator and pantry and ate everything in sight.

SIMPLE STEPS TO BEAR-PROOF YOUR PROPERTY

District Wildlife Manager Jerrie McKee offers three simple steps to bear proof your property:

1.  Take down all bird feeders.  Put them back up after Thanksgiving.  Seven pounds of bird seed can provide a bear with over 12,000 calories. (25 pounds of dog food can provide 42,000 calories).  In late summer, bears go into a "feeding frenzy"--they must accumulate 20,000 calories a day to prepare for hibernation.  Hummingbird feeders should also be removed.

2.  Close and lock all doors and windows.  With their acute sense of smell, they are strong enough to easily break windows and doors and gain entry if they smell food.

3.  Under no circumstances, leave trash or recyclables outside at night.   Much of what people throw away smells like food to a hungry bear.  Standard metal or plastic trash cans won't keep out bears.  Buy a bear-proof container if you must leave trash outside. 

Why, in 2010, has the area had such an influx of hungry bears? One suggestion has been offered by local resident Marlene Johancen, Silver Thorn Run.  She has observed that the Choke Cherry bushes on her property (ripe Choke Cherries are a principal diet of bears each year) are very slow in developing because of the weather this year.  Marlene says that the Choke Cherries are currently very bitter--and probably bitter to the taste buds of the bears.  They should fully ripen soon and this may lessen the bear's need to seek other sources of food.

ROXBOROUGH IN METRO NEWS--AGAIN

For better or worse, the Roxborough bear news has captured the attention of local news media.  Satellite uplink trucks from Channels 4, 7, and 9 all reported the bear incidents, often offering live coverage.  The Denver Post also reported the story in its news columns. 

Channel 4 provided excellent live coverage of the event.  Reporter Dominic Garcia and cinematographer Mark, spent hours Friday afternoon and prepared live and taped reports beginning with the 6 PM Channel 4 news on Friday, at 10 PM on Friday, and on Saturday morning.  Dominic's report has been archived on the CBS 4 Website.  It may be accessed as follows:

Go to www.cbs4Denver.com
Scroll down and select "Video Staff Picks" on the left hand side of the Opening Page
Search: "Bear Break-in In Douglas County Neighborhood"

Screen shots of the CBS 4 coverage:

 

(l.) Anchor Jim Beneman introduces Reporter Dominic Garcia for live satellite uplink for the 10 PM newscast from Roxborough Park on Friday evening.  (r.) Dominic shows the screen ripped by the bear to gain entrance to the Lankford/Coloccia home on Indian Paint Run.

THANKS FOR THE PICTURES--

The Roxborough e-News has received 25 pictures of bears from local residents.  Thanks for your effort and sorry that we could not use many of them.  Here's a  picture of a "Cute but potentially dangerous bear" on the patio rock wall of the Johancen residence in Roxborough Park.

Greg Liptak, Editor and Publisher
Roxborough e-News
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