Is diversionary feeding of wild bears helpful or not

Discovery News' Larry O'Hanlon questions whether diversionary feeding of wild bears is good or bad.

All home break-ins, tent raids and many other bear incidents are by bears who are suffering from forests damaged by fires, drought or other factors that have reduced their food supply, said Montana bear biologist Lynn Rogers of the Wildlife Research Institute in Minnesota. This intensifies when bears enter their "hyperphagic," heavy eating stage in the fall, before hibernation.

"It's food that they are after," explains U.S. Geological Survey biologist Chuck Schwartz, who is the leader of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team. He said the same applies to all bears, from grizzlies to black bears.

"These bears are in this state when they need this food to make it through the winter."

So why not scatter leftover orchard fruit in the woods for bears to forage on? Well for one thing, such "diversionary feeding" can be against the law. That was the case at Lake Tahoe, Calif., where the Bear League tried it a few years ago and claim they saw an immediate halt to bear break-ins.

Read the full story: Should we feed wild bears?

Photo from iStock via Discovery News

Canadian grizzlies vs. polar bears

Discovery News reports that Canadian grizzly bears are encroaching on polar bear territory.

A Canadian Field Nationalist study shows that the grizzlies are moving into territory in northern Manitoba traditionally thought as polar bear territory. The study claims that this grizzly encroachment could inflict damage on the polar bear population.

Before 1996, there was no evidence that grizzly bears encroached on polar bear territory. From that year on, however, there have been at least 12 sightings, negating the prior theory that the barren landscape north of the Hudson Bay was impassable, in terms of resources, for migrating grizzly bears. But the flexible bears, which can eat everything from meat to berries, have crossed the gap and likely won't look back much, since the polar bear region is known for its abundant caribou, moose, fish and berries.

Read the full story: Grizzly bears enter polar bear territory

Photo by Linda Gormezano

Beautiful white dunes of New Mexico

Here's a beautiful shot of New Mexico's white sand dunes from Discovery News. The dunes are part of the Chihuanhuan Desert and the aptly named White Sands National Monument.

Some 250 million years ago, this area was home to a shallow sea. As the sea level began to drop, thick layers of gypsum settled on the sea floor, eventually forming a field. Then about 70 million years ago, plate tectonic activity increased. During this time, the Rocky Mountains shot up, taking the giant gypsum field with it.

Read the full story: White sand dunes for miles

Sunscreen ingredients bad for coral reefs

Discovery News reports that sunscreen ingredients are a "major cause of coral bleaching."

A study by the European Commission found that sunscreen ingredients start distressing coral reefs immediately and cause complete bleaching within 4 days:

"An estimated 4,000 to 6,000 tons of sunscreen are released annually in reef areas, with 25 percent of the sunscreen ingredients on skin released into water over the course of a 20-minute submersion."

Sunscreens are recommended to protect against skin cancer.

Read the full story: Sunscreen stresses coral reefs