An analysis and evaluation of a black bear sanctuary in western North Carolina

作者: Roger A Powell

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摘要: OBJECTIVE To provide information on the habitat preferences and population dynamics of black bears in the Southern Appalachians and to assess the present and future value of the sanctuary system in protecting and perpetuating the black bear resource in North Carolina.METHODS Study Area This study was conducted from May 1981 through December 1990 in the Pisgah Bear Sanctuary and in adjacent nonsanctuary lands located within the Pisgah National Forest approximately 35 km SW of Asheville, North Carolina (Figure 1). The Sanctuary and the nonsanctuary areas together total over 400 km² and are located in the southern Blue Ridge Mountains. Elevations range from 650 m to 1,750 m. The Blue Ridge Parkway runs along Pisgah Ridge at approximately 1,500 m, above most of the study area. The area was managed for multiple use including timber, wildlife and recreation. Bear hunting was illegal within the sanctuary and along the Blue Ridge Parkway corridor. Precipitation was frequent in the study area and high elevations frequently were enveloped in heavy fog. Hardwoods such as oaks (Quercus sp.), hickories (Carya sp.), tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera) and maples (Acer sp.) intermixed with pine (Pinus sp.) and hemlock (Tsuga sp.) were predominant trees. Betton (1982) provided details on the forests in the Pisgah Bear Sanctuary and on adjacent US Forest Service lands.

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