GRAND RAPIDS, Mich — Right now in Michigan, it pays to "bear" aware because the population of black bears is growing and moving farther south.
That can be great news for bear hunters (the application period runs May 1 - June 1), and non-hunters who want a chance to see the animal in the wild.
"We estimate about 12,000 bears in the state, with 10,000 being in the U.P. and about 2000 being in the Lower Peninsula,” said Jared Duquette, Michigan Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Interaction Specialist.
Those numbers are from the DNR's latest count for 2024, showing a continuing trend.
The DNR estimates the bear population below the bridge in 2023 was up 37% from 2012, and nearly 160% from 1992.
“Basically, about, little over about 12 years ago, the state basically kind of cut back on the number of harvest tags that the hunters could use," said Duquette. "And so since then, it's allowed the population to really expand, especially in the northern Lower Peninsula. And so with that, you know, it's kind of like development. You people kind of push and bears have kind of developed their own little suburbs, if you will.”
One of those “little suburbs” is in our neck of the woods.
“The core growth of the bear population the lower peninsula is, if you kind of drew a line from kind of Muskegon over, you know, to the kind of I-75 straight across, and then up, it's that kind of Big Rapids area they're expanding there," said Duquette. "That's kind of the fringe the bear suburbs, as I kind of like to think about it. And from there, you know, you get bears that kind of deviate farther south from there. But that core area where we've really seen a lot of growth the past 10 years is basically between Cadillac and Traverse City.”
With more bears and more people, what do you do if you see a bear? Jared recommends first clean up after yourself. That means secure any food outside, and lock up your trash if you're in a bear-ish area. Clean grills and take down bird feeders, too.
And if you get a little too close to a bear for comfort?
“If you do get into the very, very rare situation where maybe a bear is bluffing you, they'll bluff charge," added Duquette. "It's a matter of, you know, get big, get aggressive. They're not like grizzlies, where you play dead. With a black bear, you fight back. And that's, you know, it's an extremely rare situation. But if somebody does find themselves in the situation, you want to fight back."
Good advice as warmer weather brings both people and bears out of their dens across Michigan.
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