Living in the mountains is pretty spectacular.
The views of the mountains and the opportunities for outdoor recreation never get old, and we love that we’re held up on our commute by elk crossing or standing in the road about as often as (if not more than) traffic.
We don’t always appreciate it when elk bugling wakes us in the wee hours of the morning, but, at the same time, we recognize it’s pretty special.
We like that we have to take the wildlife into account when thinking about what we plant because we know the area deer and other critters love a good salad bar.
We love that every so often we get a special treat when a moose makes its way to town.
The number of species we see and hear on a daily basis is likely more than some areas experience over a long period of time.
But, living in the mountains also comes with challenges we must rise to meet, like ensuring we’re doing our part to learn about living with and keeping our wild neighbors — and ourselves — safe.
Take our moose friend that made its way to town over the last week, for example. Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) explains on its website, “Moose have very few natural enemies in the wild and, as a result, do not fear humans as much as most other species. Moose tolerate humans longer and at closer distances. They are extremely curious and often will approach humans or houses. For these reasons, it is extremely important to understand moose behavior when living in or visiting the areas they inhabit.
“While moose encounters with people are quite common, moose cause few problems. However, moose can and will ‘tree’ people who have approached them too closely, kill or injure pets or livestock, and chase people or dogs away from territories they are defending. Caution and common sense go a long way in preventing problems with moose.”
It also notes that dangerous conflicts between people and moose are increasing.
Also increasing are reports of conflicts with bears — wild neighbors we obviously deal with on a more regular basis, especially this time of year, when they’re looking for an easy meal.
It doesn’t take long for hungry bears to associate residential areas with food, but it can take a long time to overcome that.
In our own neighborhood, previous residents seemingly followed the list of things we shouldn’t do like a checklist, leaving pet food outside, leaving trash out unsecured and more, and it took years of diligence to not see bears on our street every week when trash day rolled around.
Others haven’t been so lucky. Over the years, we’ve covered several instances of bears entering homes, getting on roofs seeking to enter chicken enclosures and more.
We’re sure we can’t avoid every single bear conflict, but we need to be aware and work to live alongside them without attracting them. These magnificent creatures don’t deserve to pay the price for our lack of care and diligence — and you probably don’t want to pay the increased consequences that now come with attracting bears.
We encourage everyone, whether they’ve seen a wild bear or not, to read this week’s article “Drought drives record bear activity as CPW urges Coloradans to secure food sources” and put applicable tips into practice if we haven’t already.
It is imperative that we each do our part to stay safe and help bears — and all of our wildlife — stay wild.
Randi Pierce
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