This seminar, the first in the series, features Laura Conlee, Science Branch Chief of the Missouri Department of Conservation.

Here, she presents “Black Bear Management in Missouri”
The Missouri Department of Conservation has conducted extensive research on Missouri’s black bear population, recently updated the state’s Black Bear Management Plan, and in 2021 implemented the state’s first black bear hunting season. Come learn about Missouri’s growing bear population, research results, new hunting season, and the challenges of a growing bear population.

Laura Conlee currently serves as MDC’s Science Branch Chief, overseeing research and management programs for MDC. Prior to her current role, Laura spent 14 years working with black bears and furbearers, first as the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife Furbearer and Black Bear Project Leader, and then as MDC’s Furbearer and Black Bear Biologist.

Randy Johnson, Large Carnivore Specialist, and Brad Koele, Wildlife Damage Specialist of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources join us in presenting the second seminar in the 2023 CNR Spring Seminar Series “The Science and Culture of Black Bears: Human Perspectives on a Large Carnivore”

Wisconsin is home to a thriving black bear population estimated at more than 24,000 bears. Although the black bear primarily lives in the northern third of the state, bears are becoming more common in central and southern Wisconsin. As the bear population continues to grow and expand its range, more and more people have asked what they can do to prevent conflicts and keep bears healthy. In this talk, learn all about our state’s bear population, the DNR’s management program, and how to be a better bear neighbor.

Randy Johnson is the large carnivore specialist for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. He is stationed in Rhinelander and his work focuses on statewide management efforts related to wolves, black bear, and the occasional cougar.

Brad Koele graduated from the University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point in 2001 with a degree in resource management and began working for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) soon after. He began his career with the WDNR as the Project Coordinator for the Deer 2000 Project before transitioning into the Assistant Big Game Ecologist position focusing on deer and bear management issues in the state. Brad was later promoted to the Wildlife Damage Specialist position, a position he holds today. In this capacity Brad’s primary responsibilities include oversight of the Wildlife Damage Abatement and Claims Program (WDACP), the wolf conflict program, the urban and nuisance wildlife programs, and the Wisconsin Deer Donation Program.

This seminar series was co-organized by the Wiscosnin Center for Wildlife at UW-Stevens Point and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

Jennifer Price Tack, Carnivore and Elk Research Scientist joins us with her talk “Bridging the Gap Between Black Bear Science and Policy at the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.”

Jennifer Price Tack works in the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources’ (WDNR’s), Office of Applied Science. As a WDNR scientist, her role is to support science-informed policy for wolves, bear, and elk in Wisconsin through population modeling and development of projects to inform research needs. Additionally, she is the lead decision analyst for the WDNR’s new Decision Science Team. She has a Ph.D. in Wildlife Sciences from the School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences at Auburn University.

Dave Telesco, Bear Management Program Coordinator for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission joins us with his talk “BearWise in Florida” BearWise is a national educational program developed to help people live responsibly with black bears. Several states, including Florida, participate in the BearWise program. The program aims to educate people about black bear behavior and ecology while reducing conflict between people and bears. Dave Telesco has served as the Black Bear Management Program Coordinator for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission since 2008 and has over 20 years of experience researching and managing black bears with a focus on mitigating human-bear conflict.

This seminar: “The Wisconsin Black Bear Project: Celebrating over 45 Years of Bears in the North Woods” is presented by Cady Sartini, Associate Professor and Black Bear Project Leader, College of Natural Resources, at UW-Stevens Point.

The College of Natural Resource’s Wisconsin Black Bear Project started in 1976 with a collaboration between the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources that has since included a wide variety of other cooperators, volunteers, and sponsors. To date, the project has resulted in one of the longest-term data sets on cub production and survival in the country, along with the publication of over 11 Masters theses documenting the habitat use, diet, movement, denning, cub production, and other aspects of the life history of bears in Northern Wisconsin. Over 45 years since the beginning of the project, this year we are celebrating exciting new developments in bear education, research, and outreach in the CNR which promise to push us into the future as one of the most dedicated programs focused on bear research and management in the country.

Waasbishkaa Binesikwe is a Carnivore Biologist and Graduate Student in Psychology. She is an Ojibwe Tribal Member of the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community. She will be discussing the emotional and spiritual relationship the Anishinaabe tribes share with Makwa (bear). Makwa is regarded as a Gaurdian/Protector within the tribes, and are also protectors or the plant/tree beings on which they depend for food and cover. She will share perspectives on how the understanding of this spiritual connection can help scientific knowledge mature, help protect future bear populations, and ensure tribal viewpoints are respected.