Featured activities
Bears of Southcentral Alaska
Bruins appear in Anchorage zoo, on trails and along streams
By Leon Unruh / Alaska.com
Wild bears sometimes appear on the fringes of Anchorage, where the city adjoins the sprawling Chugach State Park.
Children walking to school in Anchorage, Eagle River and Girdwood occasionally see black bears near the schools. Bears, mostly black, raid garbage cans and chicken coops and eat dog food carelessly left outside overnight.
In Seward, hungry and curious bears appear out of the Resurrection River Valley and other "bear highways." Bears also pop in on Cordova and Valdez, among other Southcentral towns.
Most of the time, black bears are reluctant to meet people and can be shooed away. Juneau has particular problems with its numerous black bears, however. The city even created a committee to deal with the bears.
Hikers in Chugach State Park, Chugach National Forest and Kenai National Wildlife Refuge need to be aware of bear habits and habitat. Bears show up during the salmon runs, usually mixing peacefully with anglers. Look for bear warning signs along the Kenai, Russian and Little Susitna rivers and along many creeks and trails with road access.
Homeowners and wildlife officers shoot several bears each year in defense of property, and many other bears are tranquilized and moved out of the area.
Each species of bear is represented at the Alaska Zoo in South Anchorage.
Alaska Zoo
Although bears species usually aren't mixed, the Alaska Zoo in South Anchorage has had great success with Ahpun and Oreo. Two cubs -- one polar, one brown -- grew up together and until May 2003 shared a large enclosure. Both bears frolicked in the pool, which is deep enough to allow underwater viewing through thick windows. But Oreo, the brown bear, started showing a mean streak, so each of the two bears now gets the run of the cage on a split shift.
Other sections of the zoo have brown and black bears, as well as a blue-tinted variety of black bear known as a glacier bear.
The Alaska Zoo is at 4731 O'Malley Road, about two miles east of the Seward Highway. Look for the blinking light above the road at the zoo entrance.
Exhibits and hours
|
