Food Preference Testing of Captive Black Bears
Bacon ES and Burghardt GM. 1983. Food Preference Testing of Captive Black Bears. Pages 102-105. In Bacon ES and Burghardt GM (ed): Bears - their biology and management: papers of the Fifth International Conference on Bear Research and Management, Feb 1980, Madison WI. Madison, Wisconsin. February 1980. International Association for Bear Research and Management
A method was developed to test food preferences of 2 young captive female black bears (Ursus americanus) under controlled conditions. Two sets of food items (5 native and 7 non-native) were tested biweekly for 1 year in a seminatural enclosure in Tennessee. The bears exhibited definite preferences among both sets of foods. The preferences were significantly correlated between the bears and were consistent throughout the year. In the native food test, acorns (Quercus alba) were the most preferred. In the non-native food test, fish (Ictiobus sp.) was the most preferred food. The foods most highly preferred were rich in either protein or carbohydrates.
- Type
- Conference Proceeding Paper
- Authors
- Bacon, Ellis; Burghardt, Gordon
- Units
- GRSM
- Keywords
- acorns, Behavior, Black Bear, Fish, Food Preferences, Foraging, GRSM-00025, GRSM-01793, Oak, Quercus alba, Ursus americanus