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“Why is this study necessary?” Because only if you hold a job position, even a small one, it makes others take account of what you are saying. As a simple tourist I tried for years to initiate a lot of changes in Bucegi. Of course, I didn’t have any success because my demerches weren’t taken into account by any authority in the field. I was only a simple tourist, maybe an idiot one! The authorities haven’t paid any attention to the projects I’ve sent and haven’t received any answers, considering that maybe I’ll give up. Those projects, ideas which I have made public to many people involved in the local tourism, were found to be excellent. For the moment I don’t know whether those authorities, not those from tourism, have applied them, for sure my ideas have represented an offense to their ego. Is not as if, a 26 years old man would teach them how to do their work!
The only institute that has granted me was The Natural Monuments Commission, clear proof that not all those in high job position hinder the ones who can prove their competences. I do not intend to consider myself an extremely competent person, but I know some things that you can learn only from the field experience. So, why this study? Because anyone can observe that the bear has another kind of behavior, different from the one we knew until now. The fact that there hasn't been found a serious and believable explanation, has made me do some hardworking researches, taking into account both the opinions of the specialists as well as of simple, ordinary people that have come in contact with this king of Romanian forests. To this information, I have added the point of view of the local person, the person involved in the tourism, from my experience and my point of view regarding these animals. It not my purporse to write a scientific paper but to rather explain for everyone to understand what has determined the changes in the behavior of the bear and its new way of life. In my opinion, there are two decisive factors that have influenced the attitude of the "Ursidae" family members:
• Man
• Weather changes
I consider that the hunting specialists know the answer just as anyone can guess it, but is much more easier to elaborate scholastic explanation, misleading and bringing on an unstable area those people who want to understand what happens with the bears, and why there are so many bear attacks, especially, after they come for food and in the outskirts of the cities. The solutions given until present are: chip implant and GPS monitorization, moving the so called “vicious” bears to other areas; these are not a method that gives anticipated results because if it would have been useful we wouldn’t have problems with bears in certain areas. Personally I have tried to find an explanation to fit more the reality, from the point of view of the native that has been going on the mountains and through the forests for 15 years and of C.M.N. custody. I underline that this study relies on the documentation about the Bucegi mountains area and it applies at a high extent at the national level. Little people know the fact that the bear has a special intelligence and in this respect I'll describe you some relevant cases:
A native that had his house at the skirts of a forest has nailed many large nails in the fence of his house, protruded, in order to prevent a bear's attack. Only that one night the bear came, placed the paws on those protruded nails and jumped over the fence. The expression “jumped over the fence” must be understood as a reality because this is how the bear acts and with the help of the cushions near the claws moves without making noise, sneaking as a true thief. Besides, most of the dogs don't bark when the bear hovers around the house. Once in the courtyard of the house, the bear went straight to the hen-coop and killed and took as many hens as he could. So, the fact that the bear started eating hens also has overturned everything that we knew about the way he chooses food.
• In some other place, the house has the kitchen right next to the door of the house, the bear pulled the door with its claws until it cracked open, and once in the kitchen, has pulled open the drawers and doors of the closets and ate everything eatable after which left, jumping over a 1,50 m high fence.
Man was the main factor that has changed for good the behavior of the bear through:
• forests exploitations – that in some areas have reached near the mountains and have disturbed the quiet place of the bear by making noise, and by his own human presence.
• Uncontrolled tourism – many tourists don't know and don't take into account the rules of a
• The heavy deforestation has had another effect on the bear; not only that it scared him, but also it has reduced its habitat, being made to limit its habitat to a smaller area, with all the consequences issued from this situation.
• The penetration of man in the less ciculated areas or in the subalpine level with the purpose of picking forests fruits (blueberries, raspberries etc.). A relevant example is the case of the superior area of
The bear got so used to the man, that it doesn't get too scarred even by petards, fact noticed by the actions of some “tourists” in the previous years. In the case of “vicious” bears – as they are named, is needed to take some immediate actions for preventing other attacks but the question is “Why the bears have become so vicious?”. Here is an aspect:
• according to the Visiting Regulation of Bucegi Natural Park, “the tourists are obliged to throw their own garbage outside the Park”. In these conditions, the placement of uncovered metallic dumpsters, near Padina cabin, where camping is allowed, is a serious mistake. Is obvious that those dumpsters were placed there for the support of the tourists and is an initiative to be praised, but there weren't taken into account all the aspects. Those dumpsters in the Padina area have made bears vicious and there was only one step left until the bears started to attack the tents! Why do I make a connection between those dumpsters and the bear attacking the tourists' tent? Because before the placement of those dumpsters there hasn't been any record about bears attacking the tents in Padina. This can be confirmed by many older mountaineers that used to come and spend days in this area. Nowaday, there aren't so many to dare pitch the tent in Padina. Besides one day in June 2006, right after 06.00 pm, I have noticed a mother bear with her cub wandering unabashed on the forest road that leads to Pestera Hotel, waiting for the dawn in order to go to the tents. Some of the personnel of the “Pestera Ialomitei” monastery were watching this as if it was something normal. I have let know some tourists that were intending to camp out, some of them changed their minds and chose the cabin others remained in the camping area and during the night the bear torn down their tents in search for food, harming one person.
The intervention of the natives of Poiana Tapului with ATVs has controlled the number of bear attacks, not to get out of hands and not to reach big scales. A girl from a tent torn down by a bear had run away to the cabin (about 300 m) and once inside has passed out. These incidents are not made public due to different reasons. The important thing is that this attack can be confirmed by 10-15 persons who were witnesses.
Bears under the stress of humans have realized that they cannot hide forever from man – and don’t have where- so, as I said previously they have adapted, especially that the new way of life has also some “advantages”: finding food easier. So, the bear was spared from finding or catching food because he could eat garbage from the dumpsters in the city or from the tourists that are amateurs of “unique” pictures. These “advantages” can be harmful for both bears and tourists who being so unconscious get close to this wild animal. The foresters draw the attention that everyone should stay away from bears because there is the danger of being attacked. Personally I believe that if every tourist that had fed a bear, would have been attacked, we would have had over 100 registered cases. I consider that the bear doesn’t attack unless you get very near him, being smart enough not to attack the person from whom he can get food, at least for the moment. Nonetheless it is better to avoid such practices and not to make them more “vicious” – as is said!
It has been tried the limitation of the bear actions through different methods such as GPS monitorization, food transportation to the depth of the forests etc, without actually understanding or better said wanting to understand that the bear needs back its habitat and not one imposed by humans. This is actually the core of the matter, and not the big and expensive actions mentioned above. Is much more easier to put an end to the forests exploitation in some areas and to put in practice the Regulation of visiting the Park, that provides measures of limiting the uncontrolled tourism (that is beside the touristic routes), to surveill and to enforce warnings, sanctions to tens of persons that gather forests fruits from reservations, initiative that would change in one-two years, depending on the efficiency and coordination of actions of the involved factors, the behavior of the Ursidae family members.
Coming back to the incident from Padina cabin, I want to specify that during the next week, other brave persons have pitched the tents. In spite of being aware of the danger, these tourists have underestimated the bear, although many of you think that I tend to overestimate him. These tourists have made a huge bonfire, have thrown petards, sang and fell asleep tired around 4 o’clock in the morning. Paciently the bear came closer at daybreak, and torn down a tent in search for food. Alarmed by the shouts of those from the torn tent, the others jumped in for help driving away the bear. What they didn’t understand is that the bear was on his territory, or if this was a danger area, with previous cases of bear attack, they should have thought better and not let their guard down. Is just like the group effect, where if one sticks together with one another, it seems like the fear vanishes, but this is not aways a solution. Let’s not forget about the fact that even the sheeps stay in flock. 1-2 years ago, there have been placed wooden placards in the popular areas warning the tourists in this regard. The bear attack is considered an accident if it is unique and without precedent. If there are many such records about bear attacks, I believe is it rightful for the wounded persons to ask the persons responsible with the management of the hunting domain from that area, to take responsibility.
The second cause, actually is still triggered by man, and is the weather changes that have influenced the life of bears. On the first days of November, on the local TV channel was said that for the bears hovering around the famous restaurant in Sinaia, this was actually their last appearing before hibernation. Only that, this was another error because – and I strongly state it – the bears don’t hibernate but have a partial hibernation state, or numbness state as some of the natives say. Do not mistake it with the image of a bear staying in the den and taking a nap until spring comes. Obviously, maybe some “specialists” will contradict me, but I bring in my defence facts and persons that have witnessed what I mentioned above:
• 1. In December 2002, I went together with one friend, accompanied by two dogs, to explore a cave (underground cave with vertical entrances). Once at the entrance of the cave, the dogs left us behind. We were looking into the darkness underneath our feet and at the scattered leaves around the entrance of the cave. Trying to see somenting inside the cave, I saw a stream raising and two eyes looking right at me. After a moment of panic, because I was so close to a bear which if he would have wanted, it could have grabbed me with its claws in a couple of seconds, I made a couple of steps backwards and I left, using another measure of distance. The bear didn’t come out of the cave, once more a proof that the bear is aggressive only in certain situations, and after a couple of days someone else saw him there. So, the bear doesn’t have a deep slumber as some say. It was amazing the fact how such a big animal has fit into a 50-60 cm wide hole. Some said that it was a bear cub, but I saw his head and by far it wasn’t a cub, although it is said that when you are scared you see things denaturated. It wasn’t my first encounter with a bear. In the spring of 2001 I have saved two children, from under a cliff on which there was a bear trying to come down to them. Until then, many mountaineers assured me that the bear runs away when it sees a man. But they have forgotten to specify that sometimes the bear runs after the man. Studying the field I have reached the conclusion that the only way of escape was to come down an unevenness valley, with rocks and stroke down trees that would have hindered the bear, and not only us. Being one minute ahead of the bear, we have reached the fire of a native and we made it through safe. Those kids must be adolescents now. The following years no one has ever seen that bear in the cave. The presence of man has bothered him!
• 2. In March 2004, I was in the area of Stancilor Sf. Ana with some friends that were doing mountaineering, left them alone and went to explore a cave. The traces I have found there, dry grass, branches, have convinced me that there has been a bear. Then I climbed higher with the purpose to find a rare flower that you can find in Bucegi, but only in some areas, this area being one. I haven’t seen the flower, but looking down in order to find it I have passed by a hill of 2, 50 m height which was at the base of the path. At some point, I have reached that hill, walked a couple of meters and suddenly I was overwhelmed by an inexplicable state. I turned and saw on that hillock a mother bear with two cubs. I was at 8-10 m distance away and it has crossed my mind that they were 2-3 m above me when I passed near the hillock and a state of fear ingulfed me. The only way of going back was the path, because there were only rocks and cliffs around, and I couldn’t push my luck for the second time. In a couple of seconds I have decided to climb some cliffs, otherwise in a normal situation I would have never done it. The mother bear didn’t make any move, but just watched as I was taking the long way back to my friends, and in 20-30 I reached the clearing from the basis of the cliff, at my friends. From this spot if you would have looked carefully, you would have seen the mother bear and the cubs waiting for the people to leave in order to come down and find something to eat among the garbages left by them. In the end, everyone saw her there on the hillock. Some friends still couldn’t believe their ears that I have passed so close to a mother bear and after 2 weeks I came back with them to that place and they were convinced that the path was at a couple of meters far from that hillock. If the bear would have made just a small leap, it would have caught me. So… maybe next time, as it was said!
Concerning the so-called “hibernation”, we must say that the bear just like other animals, must take a cover during bad weather, when its vital signs are lowered. Taking into account the weather changes, the bear’s “hibernation” period varies. It can be delayed or prolonged depending on the weather. For sure, this period has been reduced, the bear hibernating 1-3 months, especially including January and February, when the mother bears breed cubs. Before it was believed that the bear hibernates/ winters during November – March.
My personal observations along the years led me to the idea that bears know how to choose a perfect shelter and it must meet a lot of conditons until is the proper one. Also, knowing the fact that bears prefer especially the cliffs, during wintertime I took a trip in their area. As I have expected, in such hibernation days, the bears leave the den, the fresh traces on the snow showing this, and wander short distances, probably until they reach a spring. Also, it is said that if there is snow at the mount of the den, why does the bear has to leave the den for water? This consideration can only be made by persons that consider the bear an animal that lacks intelligence! Do we prefer snow to a glass of water? So, this is the bear’s imposed way of life, determined most of the part by man, and I do not see the point in searching all kinds of solutions that look good to the public, when actually the truth is another. The guilty persons know! I launch a simple question to the persons responsible and everyone else that read this study: Is it rentable for
