Season‐specific habitat restriction in Asiatic black bears, Japan

Understanding habitat selection by wildlife, particularly in the vicinity of areas dominated by humans, is often important in identifying causes of human–wildlife conflict. With recent increases in the number of Asiatic black bears (Ursus thibetanus) in areas near settlements in Japan, there have been more human–bear conflicts. Because of the seasonal nature of these conflicts, we hypothesized that a season-specific restriction in habitat may influence bears to select human-settled areas. To confirm this, we focused on the estimate of seasonal differences in distributions of potential bear habitat. We collected global positioning system data from 14 female and 15 male bears in a 1,023-km2 range located in the central Alps of Japan. We employed resource selection functions to model season-specific habitat selection and quantified the spatial distribution of core habitat patches. Compared with other seasons, selected habitat of bears during summer was restricted to the narrow fringes of human-dominated lands. Selection for younger forests, edges, and lowland red pine (Pinus densiflora) forests supporting diverse food resources indicated that Asiatic black bears were seasonally dependent on early successional stages. In summer when human–bear conflicts peaked, bear avoidance of plantations and the selection for remnant small forest openings and lowland forest combined was the major cause affecting bear proximity to settlements. We recommend that wildlife managers work to restore food-producing habitat in dense, mature plantations to reduce negative interactions between humans and bears. © 2017 The Wildlife Society.