Bear-Tested, Bear-Approved

In a scene reminiscent of the famous Samsonite luggage commercial in which a gorilla puts the product’s durability to the test, four grizzly bears at the Bronx Zoo gave a bear-proof food canister for backpackers a real beating. Before a crowd of lunchtime visitors to the Bear Den exhibit, they turned the canister around and around in their claws, stomped on it with 700-pounds of body weight, and puzzled over it for a full half-hour. But in spite of their best efforts, the treat-filled container remained sealed and intact. Bronx grizzlies Archie, Jughead, Betty, and Veronica have now officially given the compact black barrel the paw’s up: This tool is essential gear for backcountry campers sharing the territory of their smaller wild cousin—the black bear.

Click on the photo to view a video clip of the grizzly bears trying out the bear-proof canister.

Unlike grizzly bears, which are found in only a handful of
locations in the lower 48 states, black bears occur
throughout the country, often living in or near areas of human recreation and development. This proximity to populated areas has resulted in the acclimation of many bears to human food and garbage, a prelude to human-bear conflicts. In the Adirondack State Park, WCS conservationists are working to minimize such encounters. For the past four years, WCS has worked with the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and outdoor retail stores to promote the use of bear canisters—manufactured by Garcia Machine—as the most effective means for backpackers to store their food and garbage. In addition to renting out these containers, WCS and its regional partners are holding group training sessions and providing campers with educational materials.

The use of bear canisters in parts of the Adirondack State Park recently became mandatory for campers from early spring to late fall, according to a regulation enacted by the DEC - click here for further information.

"The new regulation will help ensure that Adirondack bears remain wild and break the cycle of their dependence on human food and garbage," said ZoÎ Smith, community coordinator for the WCS Adirondack Communities and Conservation Program.

According to WCS’s black bear research in the Lake Tahoe and Sierra Nevada region, black bears with access to
garbage dumpsters and other sources of foo becomea  third less active and weigh up to 30 percent more than bears living under wild conditions.

To find the locations of stores renting and selling canisters, information on canister use and brands, and to learn
more about bears, visit www.wcs.org/adirondackbbear.

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