Understanding CT’s Growing Black Bear Population

DERBY — The Naugatuck Valley Audubon Society, Inc, in cooperation with the Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) Kellogg Environmental Center, will host a program on Connecticut black bears this month.

The presentation will be given by DEP’s wildlife biologist Paul Rego. His talk will cover the history, biology, and management of bears in Connecticut, including their recent increase in population in the state.

The program will take place on Tuesday, January 18, at 7:30 pm, at Kellogg Environmental Center, 500 Hawthorne Avenue (just off Route 34; watch for signs).

Getting a glimpse of a bear in Connecticut was once unlikely because bears were extirpated from the state beginning in the mid-1800s. Since then, bears have made a comeback.

Their return is due, in part, to the regrowth of forestland throughout the region following the abandonment of farms during the late 1800s. Beginning in the 1980s, the DEP wildlife Division had evidence of a resident population.

Since then, annual sighting reports have increased dramatically, indicating a rapid increase in the bear population. With the number of bears increasing in the state, it is important for residents to learn the facts about black bears and how to coexist with them.

Paul Rego has been a wildlife biologist with the wildlife division of the Department of Environmental Protection for more than 15 years. As a furbearer biologist he deals with species ranging from muskrats and raccoons to coyotes and black bears. This work ranges from addressing the conflicts between animals and humans to monitoring the status of uncommon species such as bobcats.

Mr Rego has worked with the habitat and deer programs with the Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife. He has a master’s degree in wildlife management from the University of Maine at Orono and a bachelor of science degree in wildlife ecology from the University of Wisconsin at Madison.

Kellogg Environmental Center is operated by the DEP Office of Communications and Education.

A donation of $4 from attendees will be requested. For further information, directions, or to register, call Kellogg Environmental Center at 734-2413.