That's because one of the largest black bear population in the area is in dismal swamp not far from there!!! We saw a couple when we went there before. That's what scares me about that being the area where she believed to be, spring bears waking up hungry!
Not to worry ...
"Although this animal is in the order Carnivora, most of its diet consists of vegetation, including twigs, buds, leaves, nuts, roots, fruit, corn, berries, and newly-sprouted plants. In spring, the bear peels off tree bark to get at the inner, or cambium, layer. It rips open bee trees to feast on honey, honeycombs, bees, and larvae, and will tear apart rotting logs for grubs, beetles, crickets, and ants. A good fisher, the Black Bear often wades in streams or lakes, snagging fish with its jaws or pinning them with a paw. It rounds out its diet with small to medium-size mammals or other vertebrates."
But ...!
"In the fall, the bear puts on a good supply of fat, then holes up for the winter in a sheltered place. The bear stops eating a few days before retiring, but then consumes roughage, such as leaves, pine needles, and bits of its own hair. These pass through the digestive system and form
an anal plug, up to 1 foot (30 cm) long [yipes!], which is voided when the bear emerges in the spring."
[National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mammals, 2d Ed., Fifth printing, Oct. 2000]
[Could this be M-Kat's "Smokey"?!!]
