Most Bear Species Populations Are Rebounding In The United States

Most Bear Species Populations Are Rebounding In The United States. . , Restored and improved habitat provides more space for bears to live. , The American Black bear population, once depleted partly from habitat loss, has made an incredible rebound. An estimated population of 800,000 black bears now roam the continent due largely to more and improved bear-friendly habitat. Former immature hardwood forests have now matured, producing abundant tree nuts craved by hungry bears., Legal protections have allowed bear populations to recover. , Early bounties offered by the government devastated brown bear populations in the lower 48 states. Their population dropped from an estimated 50,000 in the early 1800s to less than 1,000 the 1970s. Strict protection afforded under the Endangered Species Act helped stabilize brown bear numbers. The population has slowly climbed to an estimated 1,850 bears today., Bears have been reintroduced into areas they used to occupy. , Re-introductions involve an attempt to establish a species in a region it formerly occupied. One of the most successful reintroduction efforts attempted in the United States involved the American black bear. 254 bears from Minnesota were reintroduced to the Interior Highlands of Arkansas. That population has grown to over 2,500 bears today.