SPORTS + OUTDOORS

Black bears are making a comeback in Louisiana and there have been a number of verified sightings in Texas. If you enjoy camping, chances are improving that you might spot a bear on a camping trip this fall.

Get bear aware at the Houston Zoo and find out what you need to know to share the great outdoors with these amazing animals during Bear Awareness Day on Saturday, August 18 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Bear Awareness Day at the Houston Zoo is designed to enlighten and educate the public about the integral role that bears play in nature, as well as the importance of respecting biological diversity.

During Bear Awareness Day, our keepers will offer timely camping tips with dramatic assistance from our Andean bears and grizzly bears during “Good Camper/Bad Camper Theatre” presentations at 11 a.m. (grizzly bear exhibit) and 2 p.m. (Andean bear exhibit). In humorous skits, our keepers will demonstrate best practices for hiking in bear country and how to make your campsite “bear proof.”

Learn what it’s like to be a bear and test your knowledge in the ‘Bear Maze, have your photo taken with the giant ‘Smokey Bear’ inflatable, and learn more about bear behavior from Texas Forest Service bear experts.

About Bears
Black bears (Ursus americanus) are a part of the heritage of Texas. Historically, black bears were widely distributed throughout all major eco-regions in Texas prior to 1820. Their last strongholds in East Texas were in the swamps and thickets of the Big Thicket Region of southeast Texas. The majority of the remaining bears were exterminated from this area during the period between 1900 and 1940.

Today, black bears are returning to their historic range in Texas. Since 1977, The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has documented black bear sightings and mortalities in Texas. Observations in the 1990s indicate the return of a few black bears to the remote forests of East Texas, primarily composed of transient, solitary males.

There is no current evidence of a resident breeding population of black bears in East Texas; however, increased sightings combined with bear recovery and range expansion in bordering Louisiana, Arkansas, and Oklahoma will increase bear occurrence and activity in East Texas in the next few years.