In the 1800s, black bears were extirpated from Connecticut due to deforestation. As forests regrew, bears began returning to the state's northwest corner. Today, human-provided resources (like garbage and bird feeders) are artificially increasing the carrying capacity of the environment, leading to rapid population expansion across the state.
Increases natural carrying capacity (mast, berries).
Artificially inflates carrying capacity, draws bears to towns.
Reproductive potential (r).
Removes bears from the population annually.
The carrying capacity of an ecosystem is the maximum population size of a biological species that can be sustained by that specific environment, given the food, habitat, water, and other necessities available.
In Connecticut, the natural carrying capacity for black bears depends on forest mast (acorns, hickory nuts) and berries. As forest cover increases, natural carrying capacity increases.
Human-Induced Factors: Black bears are opportunistic omnivores. When humans leave out unsecured garbage, bird feeders, and compost, they introduce high-calorie, artificial food sources into the ecosystem.
This artificially raises the carrying capacity (K), allowing the population to grow larger and faster than natural resources would permit. However, this leads to increased human-bear interactions and conflict.