Is excessive Logging , hurting the bear pop in your area
- Thread starter Spruster
- Start date
I'm in SK. West side. I also own a cabin next to provincial forest on the east side of the province where I hunt elk every year. To be honest I'm not sure when the practice of tearing up the roads started. I've been hunting logging cuts since I was a kid (44 now) and they haven't always been doing that. I would guess somewhere around the last 10yrs they have started doing it.
If logging in BC in the winter kills bears that is news to me. We shut down for red legged frogs.
Bear den trees do not get cut down.
Black bears breed like rats. It's too bad logging doesn't help keep them in check. unless
More cut blocks means more poachers.
Bear den trees do not get cut down.
Black bears breed like rats. It's too bad logging doesn't help keep them in check. unless
More cut blocks means more poachers.
In an overgrown forest, where very little light reaches the ground, there's not much food for a bear.
It's a "specialised" food source maybe, but nothing to sustain most of them bear for going into winter. Logged areas create habitat for lots of game. Grass grows, fresh leafs and and berries follow. So IMO, there is more food for Ungulates, Omnivores, ... you name it.
Next time you wipe your bum, thank a logger, unless you wipe it with plastic! Just a thought, but who knows...
Btw. OP, how do you define "excessive", again, for logging?
It's a "specialised" food source maybe, but nothing to sustain most of them bear for going into winter. Logged areas create habitat for lots of game. Grass grows, fresh leafs and and berries follow. So IMO, there is more food for Ungulates, Omnivores, ... you name it.
Next time you wipe your bum, thank a logger, unless you wipe it with plastic! Just a thought, but who knows...
Btw. OP, how do you define "excessive", again, for logging?
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Still not sure how you think logging kills bears? You figure they den up in those huge spruce tree stumps or something?
And even if they did... that particular site would be identified, flagged, and given a wide berth... as per the rules and regulations pertaining to habitat and disturbance.
R.
You even quoted this yourself? Was one of the first to mention it...
C'mon man. Give it a rest already. You can't take on the whole forum?
R.
From fairy shrimp? Wow. Aren't those things everywhere? Lol.
Licensed to kill
CGN Regular
- Location
- Peace Country Alberta
The general consensus SEEMS to be not only "no" but that cut blocks IMPOVE the environment for wildlife including bears. However, the only way to tell would be to put up a poll and let people "vote".
Yeah I didn't know those things were listed in any way...jeez I better start applying for funding for puddles back home lol. Or can they be protected from forestry operations even though they're not classified as threatened etc?
I can see vernal pools being avoided for a few reasons but those lil guys are a surprise lol
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I never read through all the posts but in areas I hunt logged areas are full of berry bushes and full of bears a few short years after being logged.
I'd think the abundant berries are a factor in bears surviving hibernation in excellent condition.
Also I see a lot of sows with 3 cubs in tow.
I'd think the abundant berries are a factor in bears surviving hibernation in excellent condition.
Also I see a lot of sows with 3 cubs in tow.
I'm not a biologist. Is there a decline in bear population. Grizzly or BB? I don't think so. Maybe the opposite for BB. Lived on Van isl and currently south central BC. Can't speak for the rest of the country or Grizzlies. Seen two in the last 4 years but I don't look for them. Pretty sure data on grizzlies is easy to find.
Getting back to the original question...regarding logging - What have you seen in your region and does it affected moose/elk and other game?
I OWN 2 hunting properties comprising 550 deeded acres. One in central Saskatchewan near Biggar where the current world record typical white tailed deer in the world was killed and 470 acres of Manitoba Interlake near "the Narrows" in big black bear country. Each property I bought specifically for wildlife managament and world class hunting. And each property is very different. Both have at least 3 big game species. Both have black bear, elk and white tailed deer. But the SK property also has moose and mule deer. Strangely, the SK property has mostly poplar but has more large wildlife species than the MB property that has considerably more tree and plant diversity.
I grew up hunting the Gull Lake and Belair Forest/Stead Manitoba area. For those of you that know the area it's mainly Jack pine, Balsam Fir sandy soils with mixed Poplar and Burr Oak bluffs, sandy gravelly soil with some lowland Black Spruce, Bog Birch and Tamarack. These forests were heavily logged and clearcut by Tembec and Tolko. I'm also familiar with the Pine Falls and Sandilands areas.
To be clear I would never buy a logged off clear cut property for wildife management expecting good hunting. I would sooner buy a solid block of never been touched timber. And in general I would say clearcutting is harmful to wildlife. Not only is it destroying their habitat but it also makes it easier for humans to find game in general because we can see and shoot farther along these cutlines. And although the Provinces and forestry companies claim that clear cutting is trying to emulate fire burns, it falls short in doing so. There is no recycling of nutrients through the carbon cycle, which is the primary benefit to forest fires.
Logged out areas are unquestionably worse for wildlife for probably the first few years after logging. And if your province decides to replant with a monoculture forest, good luck having a diverse ecosystem and good hunting when the forest matures. Monoculture replants are dead zones for wildlife.
Once the area start to regrow narurally and some foliage appears like berries, hedges and forbs, some wildlife will begin to re-appear. It begins with fungus and decomposers like mushrooms and insects and birds and smaller mammals. There is not a lot of food during this early stage of succession. These creatures eat the berries and break down the leftover slash and stumps that the forestry operations leave behind.
As smaller trees regrow, the nutritious shoots are eaten by animals like deer or moose. Moose particularly like Red Willow and will usually be found in wetter areas near beaver ponds because that's where their food source is. As the forest regrows the foliage changes and so do the animals that live and eat there. Eventually when the forest becomes thick as trees live and die, larger animals that depend on the timber to hide and den move in like bears and large preadators like wolves. But also squirrels that eat the seeds from pinecones and owls that live inside the trees all winter. Small mammals known as fur-bearers use dead trees to store seeds and for cover since there are many places to hide when compared to a sapling.
So, in sum, logging by clearcut is very destructive to wildlife. Even after natural regeneration, I would say that for our purposes as hunters, and depending on how you hunt and your experience level and whether or not you have access to other lands, you may be approaching the question from a rather biased view. If you're seeing a lot of wildlife in these clearcut areas its probably more to do with the fact that you can see further in these areas and as the game species move about, some will inevitably cross through an open area thus providing you an opportunity to kill them. However, these animals are usually immature specimens. The true trophies that grow old with age will seldom be found in these open areas, although from time to time they do expose themselves in the open.
I OWN 2 hunting properties comprising 550 deeded acres. One in central Saskatchewan near Biggar where the current world record typical white tailed deer in the world was killed and 470 acres of Manitoba Interlake near "the Narrows" in big black bear country. Each property I bought specifically for wildlife managament and world class hunting. And each property is very different. Both have at least 3 big game species. Both have black bear, elk and white tailed deer. But the SK property also has moose and mule deer. Strangely, the SK property has mostly poplar but has more large wildlife species than the MB property that has considerably more tree and plant diversity.
I grew up hunting the Gull Lake and Belair Forest/Stead Manitoba area. For those of you that know the area it's mainly Jack pine, Balsam Fir sandy soils with mixed Poplar and Burr Oak bluffs, sandy gravelly soil with some lowland Black Spruce, Bog Birch and Tamarack. These forests were heavily logged and clearcut by Tembec and Tolko. I'm also familiar with the Pine Falls and Sandilands areas.
To be clear I would never buy a logged off clear cut property for wildife management expecting good hunting. I would sooner buy a solid block of never been touched timber. And in general I would say clearcutting is harmful to wildlife. Not only is it destroying their habitat but it also makes it easier for humans to find game in general because we can see and shoot farther along these cutlines. And although the Provinces and forestry companies claim that clear cutting is trying to emulate fire burns, it falls short in doing so. There is no recycling of nutrients through the carbon cycle, which is the primary benefit to forest fires.
Logged out areas are unquestionably worse for wildlife for probably the first few years after logging. And if your province decides to replant with a monoculture forest, good luck having a diverse ecosystem and good hunting when the forest matures. Monoculture replants are dead zones for wildlife.
Once the area start to regrow narurally and some foliage appears like berries, hedges and forbs, some wildlife will begin to re-appear. It begins with fungus and decomposers like mushrooms and insects and birds and smaller mammals. There is not a lot of food during this early stage of succession. These creatures eat the berries and break down the leftover slash and stumps that the forestry operations leave behind.
As smaller trees regrow, the nutritious shoots are eaten by animals like deer or moose. Moose particularly like Red Willow and will usually be found in wetter areas near beaver ponds because that's where their food source is. As the forest regrows the foliage changes and so do the animals that live and eat there. Eventually when the forest becomes thick as trees live and die, larger animals that depend on the timber to hide and den move in like bears and large preadators like wolves. But also squirrels that eat the seeds from pinecones and owls that live inside the trees all winter. Small mammals known as fur-bearers use dead trees to store seeds and for cover since there are many places to hide when compared to a sapling.
So, in sum, logging by clearcut is very destructive to wildlife. Even after natural regeneration, I would say that for our purposes as hunters, and depending on how you hunt and your experience level and whether or not you have access to other lands, you may be approaching the question from a rather biased view. If you're seeing a lot of wildlife in these clearcut areas its probably more to do with the fact that you can see further in these areas and as the game species move about, some will inevitably cross through an open area thus providing you an opportunity to kill them. However, these animals are usually immature specimens. The true trophies that grow old with age will seldom be found in these open areas, although from time to time they do expose themselves in the open.
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So you “manage” the wildlife but not the flora? The boreal forest is evolved to burn. Jack pine cones will not open without fire. Spruce cones are clustered near the top of mature trees for a reason. Poplar root systems can be thousand of years old. You helicopter in to your hunting properties? Please post pictures of these ancient old growth trees on your land as I’m genuinely curious.
So many feelings and thoughts in their disaster thread backed up with female logic.
Not sure about other provinces but the chance of owning timber rights or mineral rights on “your” land is small.
Mining companies can’t get patent land anymore and have to do “work” to keep the claim
It helps when your land is surrounded by a 15,000 acres former PFRA pasture, Private property and Provincial Wildlife lands where hunting and road access is limited. Bait and patience is the key. I didn't buy land to hunt does and fawns. Mature animals are more likely to be in areas with less human disturbance. Other than that what else can I do? I'm not going to invest millions of dollars in land and hundreds of thousand more in equipment to shoot a buck. But a small investment in land and alfalfa bales is a reasonable tradeoff. To be clear, I only bait where legal. And follow all hunting regulations. Unfortunately I don't carry a treaty card so all season hunting with no limits is out of the question. I'd also like to take the time to thank the Province of Saskatchewan for allowing baiting of deer. The more choices we have as hunters about how we practice our passion the better.
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The green idiots promote hysteria like the Liberals and covid scam, everytime I drive through north Alberta its nothing but endless bush.. We could keep cutting a 300 more years and still lots of bush, by then you got new forests... Support your conservation programs and not scam pharmaceutics and green carbon moron pointless tax grabs that do absolute 0
