WEBVTT - Oklahoma Bear Biology with Jeff Ford 0:00:00.640 --> 0:00:04.440 You're listening to the Sportsman's Nation podcast network, brought to 0:00:04.440 --> 0:00:08.960 you by Exodus Trail Cameras. Now it's summertime, and that 0:00:09.080 --> 0:00:11.799 means it's time to start getting our trail cameras ready 0:00:11.800 --> 0:00:15.120 and our trail cameras out to start capturing pictures of 0:00:15.320 --> 0:00:18.479 velvet bucks. And our friends at Exodus are kicking things 0:00:18.520 --> 0:00:21.680 off with velvet Fest. Now what is velvet Fest? Long 0:00:21.720 --> 0:00:24.840 story short, velvet Fest is the opportunity for you to 0:00:24.960 --> 0:00:28.760 win a variety of different prizes just by purchasing Exodus 0:00:28.760 --> 0:00:31.400 Trail Cameras, one of the best trail cameras on the market. 0:00:31.840 --> 0:00:35.320 Now until July twelve, when you purchase any trail camera, 0:00:35.600 --> 0:00:38.559 you will be automatically entered into a drawing to win 0:00:38.600 --> 0:00:41.920 a variety of prizes from companies like Wicked Tree Gear, 0:00:42.320 --> 0:00:46.000 MAYBN Rifle Scopes, Tethered Tree Saddles, and of course, Exodus 0:00:46.040 --> 0:00:50.280 Trail Cameras. Be sure to follow Exodus on Facebook and Instagram, 0:00:50.320 --> 0:00:53.880 and be sure to visit Exodus outdoor gear dot com 0:00:54.000 --> 0:01:03.640 for more information on velvet Fest. My name is Clay Nukeleman. 0:01:03.680 --> 0:01:07.280 I'm the host of the Bear Hunting Magazine podcast. I'll 0:01:07.319 --> 0:01:10.120 also be your host into the world of hunting the 0:01:10.560 --> 0:01:15.720 icon of North American wilderness bear. We'll talk about tactics, 0:01:15.840 --> 0:01:19.240 gear conservation, but will also bring you into some of 0:01:19.240 --> 0:01:28.200 the wildest country on the planet. Chasing Bear. On this 0:01:28.240 --> 0:01:31.600 episode of the Bear Hunting Magazine podcast, we're down in 0:01:31.800 --> 0:01:37.480 Oklahoma meeting with Jeff Ford of the Oklahoma Department of 0:01:37.480 --> 0:01:41.000 Wildlife and we're talking the nitty gritty of bears. This 0:01:41.040 --> 0:01:44.400 is a cool podcast because Jeff is a he's a biologist, 0:01:44.560 --> 0:01:47.280 and he is a he's a he's pretty much the 0:01:47.319 --> 0:01:50.440 man in Oklahoma when it comes to black bear. And 0:01:50.440 --> 0:01:53.640 there's a fascinating story about Oklahoma black bear. It's a 0:01:53.720 --> 0:01:57.920 fascinating hunting opportunities, but really it's a fascinating conservation story. 0:01:58.240 --> 0:02:00.480 So we have a really interesting converse station where we 0:02:00.720 --> 0:02:06.120 nerd out, absolutely nerd out about black bears. Super fun. 0:02:06.200 --> 0:02:08.480 Jeff Ford has has become a good friend of mine 0:02:08.520 --> 0:02:11.600 over the last several years as I've gotten to know him. 0:02:11.600 --> 0:02:14.400 Because you have to check bears in, you actually have 0:02:14.440 --> 0:02:17.079 to take the bear to the check station, and that's 0:02:17.080 --> 0:02:19.880 how I met Jeff. Was the first year that I 0:02:20.080 --> 0:02:22.919 harvested a bear in Oklahoma, I met Jeff Ford who 0:02:22.960 --> 0:02:25.720 become friends. Since then, Jeff as a tradicial blow hunter 0:02:26.120 --> 0:02:28.560 fun podcast. Hey, I want to bring to your attention 0:02:29.480 --> 0:02:32.760 we just put up a very cool video on our 0:02:32.800 --> 0:02:35.200 YouTube channel. I don't know if you're watching our YouTube 0:02:35.200 --> 0:02:37.280 stuff that you should. We've got a new video called 0:02:37.320 --> 0:02:41.240 Stalking and it's about my hunt in British Columbia's pretty 0:02:41.280 --> 0:02:45.120 incredible video. A lot of really neat stocks stalking a 0:02:45.160 --> 0:02:47.960 bear through a culvert and just it's a it's a 0:02:47.960 --> 0:02:50.480 great video. It's up on the Bear Hunting Magazine YouTube channel. 0:02:50.480 --> 0:02:53.720 To check it out. 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Guys, check 0:03:45.960 --> 0:03:49.880 out the Western Bear Foundation. These guys are fighting the 0:03:49.960 --> 0:03:54.360 good fight for bear hunters and bear conservation out in 0:03:54.440 --> 0:03:57.920 the Western United States. Check them out. This is a 0:03:57.960 --> 0:04:02.160 membership driven organization. You become a member of the nonprofit 0:04:02.200 --> 0:04:07.040 Western Bear Foundation and also get a subscription Bear Hunting Magazine. 0:04:07.520 --> 0:04:09.920 Check them out and see what they're doing. There are 0:04:10.040 --> 0:04:15.800 allies in the fight for preservation of hunting, bear, hunting, bears, 0:04:16.480 --> 0:04:20.200 wild places. Good guys. Check them out now on the 0:04:20.320 --> 0:04:31.680 southeast Oklahoma. Welcome to the Bear Hunting Magazine podcast. We 0:04:31.960 --> 0:04:39.080 are in Hodgen, Oklahoma today with with a good friend 0:04:39.080 --> 0:04:41.080 of mine has become a good friend over the last 0:04:41.120 --> 0:04:45.200 few years through checking bears. But uh, I'm with Jeff 0:04:45.240 --> 0:04:47.880 Ford and I'll introduce him. I've also got the bear 0:04:47.920 --> 0:04:50.960 tech Colby moorehead. Give him a give him a hello. 0:04:51.520 --> 0:04:55.200 Just talking about how Colby doesn't say much. But uh, 0:04:55.480 --> 0:04:59.040 now this is a this is gonna be I've been 0:04:59.040 --> 0:05:01.160 looking forward to this conver station for a wild Jeff. 0:05:01.520 --> 0:05:06.560 But so, Jeff is a You're a biologist with the Oklahoma, 0:05:06.600 --> 0:05:11.440 Oklahoma Department of Game of fish how long. We'll give 0:05:11.520 --> 0:05:13.920 us a little bit of an introduction, Jeff, but my 0:05:14.040 --> 0:05:16.520 initial question would be how long have you been working 0:05:17.160 --> 0:05:22.040 with the department. I started full time with the Oklahoma 0:05:22.080 --> 0:05:27.360 Department of Wildlife in nineteen I'd worked a couple of 0:05:27.440 --> 0:05:33.160 years prior to that, just part time, and uh, opportunity 0:05:33.279 --> 0:05:36.080 came up for a full time position, so I hopped 0:05:36.160 --> 0:05:39.400 right in there as a biologist. As a boy, I 0:05:39.440 --> 0:05:42.640 started as a wildlife technician, and I became a biologist 0:05:43.160 --> 0:05:50.839 about thirteen years ago. Okay, okay, and you you're originally 0:05:50.880 --> 0:05:53.680 from this area, Southeast Oklahoma, Yes, where I grew up 0:05:54.400 --> 0:05:57.440 ten miles from here, spent spent my whole life in 0:05:57.640 --> 0:06:02.000 Southeast Oklahoma. Yea, and a little personal background. You're a 0:06:02.000 --> 0:06:05.880 traditional bow hunter, that's right. That's the to me, that's 0:06:06.680 --> 0:06:10.400 the purest way to hunt. Yeah, and uh, I admit 0:06:10.720 --> 0:06:16.520 I do grab across the bowl late deer season. Yeah, 0:06:16.640 --> 0:06:18.640 if I haven't put any meat on the table yet, 0:06:18.720 --> 0:06:21.599 But yeah, I like eating them way better and I 0:06:21.680 --> 0:06:26.839 like missing them. So yeah, Well, we're looking at a 0:06:26.839 --> 0:06:29.760 couple of nice Southeast Oklahoma white tails on the wall 0:06:29.880 --> 0:06:34.080 right there, A couple of nice dere Yeah, I'm really blessed, 0:06:34.160 --> 0:06:37.520 but have some good areas to hunt and and have 0:06:37.600 --> 0:06:40.839 a little time in the fall, usually in December. Yeah, 0:06:41.200 --> 0:06:43.920 to get out and chase them after bear seasons over. 0:06:45.680 --> 0:06:49.480 So you are I want to get into you, but 0:06:49.600 --> 0:06:52.280 I want to talk about the landscape, which I was 0:06:52.279 --> 0:06:57.080 almost gonna jump into, kind of the landscape of where 0:06:57.080 --> 0:07:01.120 we're at and whatnot. But you are. There's not an 0:07:01.160 --> 0:07:05.560 official bear biologist of Oklahoma. Am I correct in saying 0:07:05.600 --> 0:07:08.400 that's correct? But if there was one, it would probably 0:07:08.440 --> 0:07:12.560 be you. Yes, sir, yes, if you can put it that. See, 0:07:12.640 --> 0:07:15.800 in Arkansas we had well now it's a large carnivore 0:07:16.000 --> 0:07:20.040 coordinator because now we have confirmed mountain lion sightings in Arkansas. 0:07:20.640 --> 0:07:24.280 So it was there was a bear biologist quote unquote 0:07:24.320 --> 0:07:27.200 that was over all the bear operations. Now his title 0:07:27.200 --> 0:07:32.280 as large carnivore biologists. But so in Oklahoma, you're the 0:07:32.400 --> 0:07:36.080 You're the bear man, right, I've you know, just living 0:07:36.120 --> 0:07:38.679 in an area where we have most of the bear 0:07:38.800 --> 0:07:43.040 that are in Oklahoma within forty miles of where we 0:07:43.080 --> 0:07:49.920 are right now. And uh so, just I guess it's 0:07:50.000 --> 0:07:52.600 it's fallen on me, you know, take care of the nuisance. 0:07:52.920 --> 0:07:56.520 Bear in the hunting seasons that we have for bear 0:07:56.600 --> 0:07:59.440 now we've had for the last ten years, we've had 0:07:59.440 --> 0:08:04.400 a season. So so I'm responsible for what goes on 0:08:05.080 --> 0:08:09.400 and keeping up with with the records. So to give 0:08:09.480 --> 0:08:16.920 just a general would you, Jeff, give a general history 0:08:16.960 --> 0:08:20.360 of Well, this is such a big box of cards here, 0:08:21.520 --> 0:08:24.160 Where did these bears come from? And how long have 0:08:24.240 --> 0:08:27.040 you guys been hunting them? Can we ask that question? Yeah? 0:08:27.280 --> 0:08:30.000 We the bear that are here, we're the ones that 0:08:30.040 --> 0:08:38.080 were part of relocated into UH southern Missouri and northern 0:08:38.200 --> 0:08:44.160 Arkansas in the sixties, and it's taken them, you know, 0:08:44.240 --> 0:08:47.000 that long to work their way down through the mountains 0:08:47.040 --> 0:08:51.400 in and into here. We've we had our first confirmed 0:08:53.160 --> 0:08:55.559 nuisance bear if we could call it a nuisance most 0:08:55.880 --> 0:09:02.440 call it a problem bear around nineteen nine, and UH 0:09:02.960 --> 0:09:07.640 we've year after year and a lot, depending on the weather, 0:09:07.880 --> 0:09:12.000 you know, the sightings increased and and the problem number 0:09:12.000 --> 0:09:17.480 of problem bears increased, UH usually related with drouth. And 0:09:17.640 --> 0:09:21.040 UH we've had we started a hunting season. We decided 0:09:21.520 --> 0:09:27.040 through research, We've done the research and UH projects and 0:09:27.080 --> 0:09:33.280 we've been doing bear surveys since the early nineties and 0:09:33.480 --> 0:09:37.280 UH we we decided ten years ago that we had 0:09:37.440 --> 0:09:41.680 enough bear in southeast Oklahoma four further southeast counties to 0:09:41.760 --> 0:09:46.160 have a bear season, and we started a bear season 0:09:46.200 --> 0:09:52.200 in two thousand nine with a twenty bear quota, and 0:09:53.040 --> 0:09:56.760 the first year the quota wasn't met. They almost got there. 0:09:56.840 --> 0:10:04.560 This nineteen bear harvested and the second year hunting, everyone 0:10:04.920 --> 0:10:08.480 was allowed to hunt with crossbows. It was legal legalized 0:10:09.040 --> 0:10:12.480 in two thousand ten, and just so half in that 0:10:12.559 --> 0:10:16.240 year was when there was a severe draft started. So 0:10:17.000 --> 0:10:20.560 two thousand and ten bear season lasted one day. We 0:10:20.600 --> 0:10:24.360 still had a quota quota, twenty bear quota, and they 0:10:24.400 --> 0:10:28.720 harvested thirty two bear on the first day, so we 0:10:28.760 --> 0:10:33.160 shut it down. We had a lot of Oklahoma's crossbows. Yeah, 0:10:33.240 --> 0:10:37.120 we had. Yeah, we we had a lot of hunters 0:10:37.120 --> 0:10:40.800 that were upset because going from the data from the 0:10:40.880 --> 0:10:46.360 previous year, uh, when only nineteen bear were harvested, they 0:10:46.440 --> 0:10:50.120 thought they had plenty of time to hunt. And so 0:10:50.520 --> 0:10:53.280 I mean I had people showing up out here ready 0:10:53.400 --> 0:10:56.040 ring my neck. You know, I haven't even gone hunting 0:10:56.080 --> 0:11:01.040 in it's over. So uh, two thousand and eleven rolled around, 0:11:01.040 --> 0:11:07.120 the draft was still ongoing. Uh, bear season lasted two days. 0:11:07.280 --> 0:11:10.000 Then we still had the twenty bear quota and they 0:11:10.040 --> 0:11:16.320 harvested thirty one bear. And talking with other states, southern 0:11:16.360 --> 0:11:20.360 states that have a black bear season, uh, they were 0:11:20.400 --> 0:11:25.239 telling us that, you know, sometimes quotas work and sometimes 0:11:25.480 --> 0:11:29.160 they don't. Normally, on a on a bad year, you'll 0:11:29.200 --> 0:11:31.880 have a lot of bear harvested, bad weather wise and 0:11:32.679 --> 0:11:36.240 food wise, and then on a good year, when there's 0:11:36.280 --> 0:11:40.920 a lot, big large mass crop in the weather calls 0:11:40.960 --> 0:11:43.760 off early and the bear slowed down in there there 0:11:43.800 --> 0:11:47.160 full it'll go back down. And we've seen that. We 0:11:47.240 --> 0:11:52.240 took the quota off after three years and uh and 0:11:52.240 --> 0:11:57.400 and that year, uh, you know, all the hunters were happy, 0:11:57.440 --> 0:12:01.000 they got to hunt all they wanted and the harvest 0:12:01.200 --> 0:12:06.439 was up, but not where we were concerned. And since 0:12:06.520 --> 0:12:10.160 then we've seen it. We've had a record year in 0:12:11.160 --> 0:12:15.800 with eighty five bear harvested five so it went from 0:12:16.000 --> 0:12:18.719 so you've had over since two thousand nine, and we're 0:12:18.760 --> 0:12:21.119 coming into the tenth year of hunting bears in Oklahoma. 0:12:21.480 --> 0:12:24.920 The harvest has been between nineteen and eighty five bears, 0:12:25.080 --> 0:12:30.520 that's right, yeah, yeah, yearly. The fall of was our 0:12:30.559 --> 0:12:37.360 tenth Yeah, and we've had a year in there where 0:12:37.400 --> 0:12:41.800 they only harvested bear after the quota was taken off. 0:12:41.880 --> 0:12:48.200 So and we've been seeing the bear. If you just 0:12:48.440 --> 0:12:51.880 averaged our overall bear harvest's gonna be about fifty bear 0:12:53.080 --> 0:12:57.640 year and you said it earlier, but they're current well 0:12:57.720 --> 0:12:59.640 up until this year. And we can talk about the 0:12:59.679 --> 0:13:02.920 regular st changes. But for the last ten years, there 0:13:02.920 --> 0:13:06.400 has been four counties in southeast Oklahoma that were open 0:13:06.480 --> 0:13:09.559 for bear hunting and it was it's legal to hunt 0:13:09.600 --> 0:13:13.640 bear on private land in those counties over bait. So 0:13:13.760 --> 0:13:17.000 that's been the method that's been the primary method of harvest. 0:13:17.120 --> 0:13:20.440 That's the most successful way to harst is that you 0:13:20.480 --> 0:13:24.880 guys wanted archery hunters hunting bear on private land and 0:13:25.000 --> 0:13:29.120 using bait, and that was that was a methodology for 0:13:29.160 --> 0:13:33.280 harvesting them. Yeah, that's we didn't see a problem with 0:13:33.559 --> 0:13:38.319 letting people huntover bait on private On public hunting are 0:13:38.440 --> 0:13:42.280 snow Clona that's managed by the department. There's no baiting 0:13:42.440 --> 0:13:47.680 is allowed for any type of harvest wildlife. Well, and 0:13:47.720 --> 0:13:51.240 we've talked about it so much even on this podcast. 0:13:52.160 --> 0:13:54.599 You couldn't kill if there was no baiting in this 0:13:54.720 --> 0:13:58.600 part of the state. I mean, just a handful of 0:13:58.640 --> 0:14:00.959 bears would be killed every year. I mean, so it's 0:14:00.960 --> 0:14:04.400 a management tool. It's a it's a management tool for 0:14:04.600 --> 0:14:07.360 you guys that have the research, that have the science, 0:14:07.400 --> 0:14:09.480 that have the knowledge of how many bears need to 0:14:09.520 --> 0:14:12.080 be extracted. It's a management tool to be able to 0:14:12.120 --> 0:14:16.240 do that right. And it allows hunters to observe the 0:14:16.240 --> 0:14:20.280 bear before season gets here and they know what's coming in. 0:14:21.040 --> 0:14:25.000 That's a good good thing about it. They can uh, 0:14:25.120 --> 0:14:28.200 you know, our research bear all have ear tags, some 0:14:28.280 --> 0:14:31.040 of them have callers, and we can talk about some 0:14:31.120 --> 0:14:34.480 of the changes that's going on with that. But yeah, 0:14:34.680 --> 0:14:36.880 I have a lot of hunters who are you know, 0:14:37.080 --> 0:14:41.640 are female bears that research bear pink ear tags and 0:14:41.680 --> 0:14:45.680 so they know it's easy to tell that ear tag 0:14:46.560 --> 0:14:48.920 and uh, and so they know it's a female if 0:14:48.920 --> 0:14:52.360 they want to harvest. Some they're legal its harvest if 0:14:52.400 --> 0:14:57.000 they want, but some people just don't want to. But uh, 0:14:57.400 --> 0:15:01.840 even overbait. And you gotta know your bear hunters. Once 0:15:01.840 --> 0:15:06.960 those acorns start falling, it gets really tough. So and 0:15:07.120 --> 0:15:10.600 it's one of the reasons our harvest was up, you 0:15:10.640 --> 0:15:16.200 know this year was you know, it stayed hot the 0:15:16.240 --> 0:15:20.480 bear removing and there the acorns were gone relatively early, 0:15:21.480 --> 0:15:23.680 so the bear kept coming to the bait. The weather 0:15:23.840 --> 0:15:28.120 was right for the hunters. I mean it seems, you know, 0:15:28.200 --> 0:15:31.960 everyone says, well, the animals aren't moving, but when it 0:15:32.000 --> 0:15:35.000 gets cold and wet, the hunters quip for most part, 0:15:35.080 --> 0:15:38.880 quit moving to and and so. But this year it 0:15:38.960 --> 0:15:41.600 stayed warm, the hunters were active and the bears were active, 0:15:41.720 --> 0:15:45.240 and uh had a lot of opportunity. We harvested a 0:15:45.240 --> 0:15:49.880 lot of big boars this year, which was great because 0:15:49.920 --> 0:15:54.520 that's our target animal there animal and so we haven't 0:15:54.560 --> 0:16:00.000 got the ages back on the on on the bear yet, uh, 0:16:00.160 --> 0:16:04.320 but we just from seeing the bear. We saw several 0:16:04.920 --> 0:16:08.240 big boars three hundred fifty four hundred pounds. Then yours 0:16:08.520 --> 0:16:11.840 was huge, and we then we had a I believe 0:16:11.880 --> 0:16:17.800 it's six hundred and eight pound harvested and Pushman Tall County. Wow, 0:16:17.840 --> 0:16:22.640 that's a monster. Monster. People don't realize how big they get. 0:16:23.240 --> 0:16:25.960 So to talk a little bit about so we've established 0:16:26.000 --> 0:16:28.400 that there's been a bear season in Oklahoma for ten years. 0:16:29.280 --> 0:16:32.560 The kind of the broader story of these bears, to me, 0:16:33.280 --> 0:16:40.200 really it's fascinating and it is the it's it's a 0:16:40.240 --> 0:16:45.880 hallmark story of the conservation efforts of hunters and biologists 0:16:46.360 --> 0:16:49.720 really across the country for sure. But you know they 0:16:49.880 --> 0:16:54.080 in Arkansas. They say that the reintroduction of Arkansas black bears, 0:16:54.360 --> 0:16:57.560 which which happened between nineteen fifty four and nineteen sixty four, 0:16:57.600 --> 0:17:00.560 they brought in two hundred and fifty four bears into Arkansas, 0:17:00.960 --> 0:17:03.960 released them in three different places. The closest, which of 0:17:04.040 --> 0:17:07.640 one of those places would have been Dry Creek over 0:17:07.760 --> 0:17:11.640 in uh Yale and Scott County, I think in Arkansas, 0:17:11.680 --> 0:17:15.000 which from right here would probably be close to fifty 0:17:15.040 --> 0:17:18.280 sixty miles from here in Arkansas. So that would have 0:17:18.280 --> 0:17:22.600 been the closest relocation place to where we're at right now, 0:17:23.160 --> 0:17:29.880 and here fifties sixty years later, those bears are here 0:17:29.960 --> 0:17:32.720 now and and and the reason being is because the 0:17:32.760 --> 0:17:36.080 habitat for bears is excellent right here and and if 0:17:36.080 --> 0:17:39.560 you looked at the topographic map of western Arkansas, you'd 0:17:39.560 --> 0:17:42.960 see southwestern Arkansas. You'd see a block of east west 0:17:43.080 --> 0:17:46.560 running ridges called the Washingtah Mountains spelled O U A 0:17:46.800 --> 0:17:50.320 c H I t A looks like Oha cheetah. Yeah. 0:17:50.560 --> 0:17:56.040 Stephen Renella says Oha cheetah uh um uh, but it's 0:17:56.160 --> 0:17:59.920 pronounced Washingta with a W and. And we're the Washington 0:18:00.000 --> 0:18:04.159 Mountains tail into southeast Oklahoma, and we're really in some 0:18:04.240 --> 0:18:09.760 spectacular beautiful mountains under three thousand feet most of them. Um. 0:18:09.800 --> 0:18:12.159 But that's why the bears are here, right, Jeff, I 0:18:12.160 --> 0:18:15.679 mean just a habitat. It's perfect habitat from National Forest. 0:18:15.720 --> 0:18:17.520 And that's where I was gonna go, sitting right here 0:18:17.520 --> 0:18:22.360 in Hodgen that your office here, U Gaming Fish, Department 0:18:22.359 --> 0:18:26.239 of Wildlife land here just about any direction you go 0:18:26.680 --> 0:18:30.520 is gonna be National Forests two hundred and forty thousand 0:18:30.600 --> 0:18:34.000 acres in the Floor County. Wow, isn't that much of 0:18:34.560 --> 0:18:38.879 Washington National Forest? And then around the hundred hundred and 0:18:39.040 --> 0:18:44.919 thirty thousand in McCurtain County. And then you have timber 0:18:44.960 --> 0:18:49.600 company land also and so and those are also a 0:18:49.640 --> 0:18:54.080 couple of w MS we at least land from Warehouser 0:18:54.160 --> 0:18:58.160 and a couple other timber companies. So there's a lot 0:18:58.320 --> 0:19:03.320 of country that with without a lot of humans in here, 0:19:03.880 --> 0:19:06.639 which there's lots of private land that's great habitat too. 0:19:07.440 --> 0:19:10.720 So these four counties would have kind of been the hub, 0:19:11.000 --> 0:19:14.880 but they're bear is way outside of these four counties. 0:19:15.040 --> 0:19:17.600 That's correct, now that I don't have a ton of 0:19:17.680 --> 0:19:21.080 insight into I mean, I've hunted. I alluded to it, 0:19:21.160 --> 0:19:23.480 and some people might have known this, But I've hunted 0:19:23.520 --> 0:19:26.600 Oklahoma the last four or five years, and I live 0:19:27.280 --> 0:19:30.200 kind of in Arkansas, on the western edge of Arkansas. 0:19:30.280 --> 0:19:32.440 So I feel like I'm home when I'm here in 0:19:32.520 --> 0:19:36.000 the Washtalls in Oklahoma, But really I don't. I don't 0:19:36.119 --> 0:19:40.280 know this country that well. Further west of here, how 0:19:40.400 --> 0:19:45.120 big is the bear range? Jeff, Well, we've had bear 0:19:45.400 --> 0:19:48.720 show up just south of Oklahoma City, which is two 0:19:48.800 --> 0:19:52.200 hundred miles west of here. Now they're not they're not 0:19:52.320 --> 0:19:55.600 a resident bear in that area. When the draft was 0:19:55.920 --> 0:19:59.919 going real strong, you on, they were following those watershed 0:20:00.800 --> 0:20:05.359 looking for food and staying on water. So uh, But 0:20:05.520 --> 0:20:10.440 we have excellent habitat west of here too. Down just 0:20:10.640 --> 0:20:14.000 say McAllister Calvin area. You can get on a map 0:20:14.440 --> 0:20:16.399 and look at that, and it starts getting in, It 0:20:16.480 --> 0:20:21.879 starts running into cross timbers habitat, which black bear prefer 0:20:22.880 --> 0:20:26.440 more of a heavily cross timber habitat. A cross timbers 0:20:26.560 --> 0:20:31.239 is where you're looking at large tracks hundred sixty two 0:20:31.359 --> 0:20:37.720 hundred acre tracks or more of hamed is cattle pasture 0:20:37.920 --> 0:20:42.800 and then just hardwoods on the creeks in the fence rows. 0:20:43.680 --> 0:20:49.040 And that's man man induced habitat. I mean, like when 0:20:49.040 --> 0:20:51.840 you're talking about hundred six decres that like the blocks 0:20:51.880 --> 0:20:55.440 that people were homestead in the timber off something cutting 0:20:55.480 --> 0:20:59.199 timber using it for cropland or or hay or cattle grazing. 0:20:59.280 --> 0:21:03.080 In some of these areas. You know, the only timber 0:21:03.560 --> 0:21:07.920 is in the ripe arian areas. Now does the cross timber? 0:21:07.960 --> 0:21:10.359 I always thought that had to do with the short 0:21:10.400 --> 0:21:12.720 stubby post oaks that they made cross ties out of. 0:21:12.960 --> 0:21:18.800 Well that also, but it's considered cross timbers habitat, and 0:21:19.160 --> 0:21:23.720 so yeah, you're looking does that does that word cross timbers? 0:21:25.119 --> 0:21:27.920 Is that referring to the type of timber or the 0:21:29.200 --> 0:21:34.840 mishmash of its crop and the habitat? Okay, okay, So anyway, 0:21:34.920 --> 0:21:37.879 that's the bear or are in there, and we know 0:21:38.440 --> 0:21:42.560 they're there, especially with everyone has trail cameras now on 0:21:42.680 --> 0:21:46.800 there whatever their feeders out in the back forty or whatever. 0:21:46.880 --> 0:21:49.320 So we're getting a lot of a lot of so 0:21:49.880 --> 0:21:53.840 the bears would range almost all the way down to 0:21:53.960 --> 0:21:57.400 the Texas border. That's right. Yeah, we've had them down 0:21:57.680 --> 0:22:00.479 right on the Red River. I'll be done. And now 0:22:00.600 --> 0:22:03.600 whether they're staying there year round her or not, but 0:22:03.800 --> 0:22:07.919 some of the research bear you know that we've caught 0:22:08.240 --> 0:22:12.960 right here, ten miles from my house. Once the mating 0:22:13.080 --> 0:22:17.439 season is over, they go seventy miles west and right 0:22:17.520 --> 0:22:20.960 on the edge of the Washingtall Highlands and they'll stay 0:22:21.040 --> 0:22:25.280 there all summer, all fall. They'll don there and then 0:22:25.400 --> 0:22:29.120 come back here during Tell me about that specific bear, 0:22:29.720 --> 0:22:32.639 like just like where you don't have to give specifics 0:22:32.680 --> 0:22:34.960 of the names of the places he was at, but 0:22:35.119 --> 0:22:37.760 just like, because that's fascinating, and you've told me about 0:22:37.800 --> 0:22:41.480 this before. But this bear, yeah, we uh caught this bear. 0:22:41.640 --> 0:22:45.639 He was a problem bear eating cat food. You o, 0:22:45.800 --> 0:22:49.160 lady just kept poor. You know, I don't know who 0:22:49.160 --> 0:22:51.680 would think cat could eat ten pounds of cat food today, 0:22:51.720 --> 0:22:55.920 But she's putting out that more and the typical you know, 0:22:56.119 --> 0:22:58.640 she comes out one day and you know, the bear 0:22:58.960 --> 0:23:01.359 is there, large war and she calls me in this 0:23:02.320 --> 0:23:05.520 this bear was there and and you know we're busy 0:23:05.720 --> 0:23:09.320 with nuisance baroness. But anyway, I it was on June 0:23:10.800 --> 0:23:13.600 was the day that I called him. I remember that 0:23:13.720 --> 0:23:16.920 day because a great friend of mine retired that day. 0:23:17.720 --> 0:23:22.440 But I caught this bear on the six of June 0:23:23.600 --> 0:23:26.119 and put her tags in him, you know, done the 0:23:26.200 --> 0:23:30.720 whole thing, and and released him and him took him 0:23:32.080 --> 0:23:36.840 miles away. Yeah, I took him down close to Broken 0:23:36.880 --> 0:23:42.120 Bow Lake to the war from here you're looking at 0:23:42.440 --> 0:23:46.520 probably forty five miles. Took him away and released him 0:23:46.600 --> 0:23:49.960 and released team. You know, even though you know a 0:23:50.040 --> 0:23:54.280 lot of bear all, they come back normally, but once 0:23:54.400 --> 0:23:57.280 we handle him and everything, you know, then they're they're 0:23:57.359 --> 0:24:01.159 pretty intelligent animal. You know, they'll they'll stay away from us. 0:24:02.040 --> 0:24:07.000 So we released this bear and nine days later our 0:24:07.119 --> 0:24:13.359 research team caught him in Daisy, Oklahoma. And you can 0:24:13.400 --> 0:24:16.399 get on the map and look, that's probably sixty miles west. 0:24:16.840 --> 0:24:19.760 As a crow flies he I mean, he from where 0:24:19.800 --> 0:24:21.800 you dropped him off, from where I dropped him off. 0:24:23.280 --> 0:24:27.080 He just hit got the mountains and went home and 0:24:27.520 --> 0:24:31.680 stayed the rest of the summer there, Denned There we 0:24:31.760 --> 0:24:35.399 went and worked in the den and the next spring 0:24:35.560 --> 0:24:40.359 he came back and uh, we had a malfunction on 0:24:40.560 --> 0:24:45.080 his collar. Last known location of him was a corn 0:24:45.240 --> 0:24:51.680 Arkansas down near a Mina. Wow. So he went from 0:24:51.800 --> 0:24:57.359 Daisy to Mina correct, Which how far is that sixty miles? 0:24:57.600 --> 0:25:02.680 Would you say as a profes something. So in the 0:25:02.840 --> 0:25:05.560 in the research that I've done with bears in Arkansas 0:25:05.600 --> 0:25:08.399 are the research I've read in different things. You know, 0:25:08.520 --> 0:25:12.000 they say there was a bear that was captured and 0:25:12.240 --> 0:25:16.840 tagged in the central Ozarks, that was killed on the 0:25:16.920 --> 0:25:21.679 interstate in Salasaw, Oklahoma, back in the nineties. I mean 0:25:21.680 --> 0:25:24.320 it's back when that original research was being done. Yeah, 0:25:24.960 --> 0:25:28.119 I still have that. We had that bear amounted. Now 0:25:28.200 --> 0:25:32.680 he's in Yeah, he's in rough shape, but yeah, yeah, 0:25:32.800 --> 0:25:36.639 we we took that bear. This is in the early 0:25:36.800 --> 0:25:41.840 days of doing our bear programs. Some schools go education, 0:25:42.280 --> 0:25:45.800 you know, how do what to do to keep bears 0:25:45.880 --> 0:25:49.680 from staying in your yard there. They don't come there 0:25:49.760 --> 0:25:52.399 because they like being around humans. They like what we 0:25:52.560 --> 0:25:56.399 put out for them to eat. So this bear we 0:25:56.560 --> 0:26:00.680 had he mounted life year was that Jeff. That was 0:26:00.960 --> 0:26:07.320 probably ninety two or ninety three. That bear was a 0:26:07.440 --> 0:26:10.440 hundred and fifty six miles away from where they captured him. 0:26:11.440 --> 0:26:14.840 That's what I remember from the research. And so he was. 0:26:16.040 --> 0:26:19.159 So we had him mounted life size and we had it. 0:26:20.040 --> 0:26:24.239 We had it the taxidermist. We said, ask him if 0:26:24.280 --> 0:26:27.680 he could build us something for this bear that we 0:26:27.760 --> 0:26:31.640 could bolting too, so we could haul him around the schools. 0:26:31.680 --> 0:26:37.400 And he builds this huge platform four him with handles 0:26:37.480 --> 0:26:39.720 on it, and so we'd throw him in the back 0:26:39.760 --> 0:26:42.560 of the truck and just take off down the road 0:26:42.640 --> 0:26:49.440 and boy, we'd get the looks three anything. No, we 0:26:49.840 --> 0:26:52.720 we never uh. He was just the bear, just the 0:26:53.200 --> 0:26:55.960 just the bear. Yeah, we we may have come up 0:26:56.000 --> 0:26:58.240 with the nickname back then, but I'd rather not say 0:26:58.480 --> 0:27:03.840 I don't. But but yeah, we used that bear in 0:27:04.200 --> 0:27:07.760 a lot of schools and he just finally wore out. 0:27:07.880 --> 0:27:11.080 We started his hide, you know, from riding in back. 0:27:11.160 --> 0:27:14.560 The truck got dried and cracked and pieces come off, 0:27:14.640 --> 0:27:18.480 and we'd go down and buy some like black throw 0:27:18.640 --> 0:27:23.600 rugs and glue to the bald spots. But we got 0:27:23.880 --> 0:27:25.840