Bear Naked Truth

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has increased its use of GPS technology to better understand the outcomes of black bears released from wildlife rehabilitation facilities.

This year marks the first time that CDFW is tracking with GPS collars all bears released back into the wild after care from the four wildlife rehabilitation centers permitted to care for black bears in California.

It’s a way to track the bears’ behavior and movements and see how they are faring in the wild. CDFW human-wildlife conflict specialists might also use the GPS information to intercept a bear approaching a neighborhood or community and redirect it back to wild habitat.

Among the GPS-tracked, rehabbed bears released in 2023 were two orphaned cubs from Tulare County. CDFW cameras were on scene to capture the final moments of their care at the San Diego Humane Society’s Ramona Campus and the return of one of the bears to its home in the woods of Tulare County. Learn more at the video featured below.