Record of american black bear (Ursus americanus) in Durango, México

Abstract

In Mexico, the American black bear (Ursus americanus) has withstood a number of anthropogenic pressures such as habitat loss, illegal poaching, poor legislation regarding conservation, management and exploitation, etc. Consequently, these have been the major causes of the decline of large carnivorous mammals in Mexico. The new technologies currently available have provided tools that facilitate their study, documenting their presence and distribution, in addition to expanding the biological and ecological information of this group of predators. During the 2009 winter season, intensive field surveys were conducted in southeastern Chihuahua and western Durango. In each area surveyed, 40 fixed monitoring stations were set, fitted with a camera trap and an scent station, distributed at distances ≥ 1 km between stations across the study areas. A total sampling effort of 2,400 days/trap resulted in one record of a juvenile American black bear (Ursus americanus; Figure 1) at Ejido “Lobos y Pescaderos”, in the municipality of Tepehuanes, Durango, in Sierra Madre Occidental, Mexico (Figure 2). This record was obtained at 2436 masl, representing the second reliable report of the presence of the American black bear at these altitudes. The photographic record currently available underscores the need to implement and intensify long-term surveys that contribute to determine the presence of American black bear in the northwestern states of Mexico, specifically in Sierra Madre Occidental in the state of Durango, in sites already identified as having temperate forests habitat conditions that are potentially suitable for the American black bear.