Is it worth calling now?

Jmp209

FNG
Joined
Apr 26, 2020
Messages
13
I jumped a bear yesterday that seems to have been starting a nest for the winter but cameras and tracks show they're still somewhat active. I got a shot off but missed completely. Has anyone ever missed one near a bed and had him return? The area has been a good bear producer, we have taken 4 in the past 2 seasons there. I'm hoping he will come back since he escaped safely, maybe just a bit more cautious. What I'm really wondering is since they're getting ready to den up but still somewhat active, would a call be enticing enough to pull one out of its nest/den if it hasn't gone into a state of torpor? I'm absolutely going to try it either way since I've got nothing to lose but I've never had any luck calling yet so if anyone with some successful bear calling experience would like sharing some opinions or advice I'd be more than happy to hear them.
 

Rogue Bay

WKR
Joined
Mar 10, 2021
Messages
354
Location
Oregon coast
I was hoping someone with more experience calling bears would chime in, but I’ll offer my very unprofessional opinion. I’ve also not had much luck calling bears so please take my “logic” with a grain of salt.

As soon as a bear is spending more energy getting food than the energy they are getting from the food, they call it quits and slow down. If the bear you saw was already in the pre-denning, lethargic stage, I would expect it would be reluctant to respond to a call. There’s a lot of risk and energy expenditure associated with predation.

I’ve never personally witnessed it, but I’ve heard that bears in this stage get cranky and territorial so maybe sounding off in his bedroom would get an aggressive response 🤷.

Like you said, you don’t have anything to lose so I say give it a try! Please let us know how it goes!
 
OP
J

Jmp209

FNG
Joined
Apr 26, 2020
Messages
13
No luck with the calling but I have no idea if there was a bear even around. He definitely hasn't been back to where I jumped him from as I've checked back a few times before the bear season ended. New York just allowed a special late holiday deer season in the southern zone for archery and muzzleloader this year between christmas and new years. I did cut some bear tracks in the snow on the 30th that couldn't have been more than a day or two old since the ground was bare on the 28th. It's been a mild winter but the mast was pretty poor this year so I'm honestly surprised to see them out and about that late.

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ledflight

WKR
Joined
Jun 21, 2018
Messages
466
Location
Brooklyn, NY
Interested in bear in NY, too. Haven't seen many when out and never with an opportunity. Seems like the edge of NY near NJ is good. It probably helps that NJ banned bear hunting.
 
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