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Heading To A National Park? Leave Your Bear-Bait Minivan Behind

October 23, 2009 at 8:46 AM | by | Comments (0)

On your next road trip to one of the country’s national parks you may want to consider taking the Prius rather than the minivan. Scientists have revealed their findings from a recent study, and apparently bears love minivans and SUVs.

In an article published in this month’s Journal of Mammalogy we learn that black bears within Yosemite National Park prefer to steal some human snacks from the insides of larger cars. Researchers looked at data between 2001 and 2007 to see if there were any connections between over 900 car break-ins caused by black bears at the park. Almost half of the vehicles that were broken into were either minivans or SUVs.

Researchers are thinking that minivans smell like food, and that is just one of several factors that probably attracts the hungry bears. Kids love food and parents love to feed them, so it’s no doubt that there’s loads of snacks inside the car, and they’re probably all contained nicely within a large cooler. If we were hungry in the woods, we’d probably start looking for a minivan as well.

The authors also hypothesized that minivans were easier to get into, as the bears appeared to just pop open a side window to easily gain access to the pick-a-nic baskets. If you’re renting a larger car to drive to Yosemite, just make sure your family gets that optional rental insurance—or just don’t leave a whole Thanksgiving dinner on the backseat.

Related Stories:
· Black Bears Looking for Fast Food Choose Minivans [About.com]
· Selective Foraging For Anthropogenic Resources By Black Bears [Journal of Mammalogy]
· National Parks coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: jiazi]

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