As most of my readers know, I am hunting massive male bears in Alberta, Canada in May/June this spring with my Ten Point 360 fps Crossbow. This black bear species is known as Ursus americanus like the bears of eastern canada and USA and americanus is extending its range to 75% of Alberta. Spring Alberta male bears are lean but often exceed 300 pounds. They live in proximity to the Olympic black bear which earned the sub-species Ursus americanus altifrontalis and the grizzly bear – Ursus arctos horribilis.
https://www.alberta.ca/black-bears-overview#jumplinks-0
Encounters of grizzly can happen but are rare because the grizzly does not frequent thick boreal forests like the black bear. I will have a rifle for backup especially when I exit the stand in the darkness.
A black bear near a 50 gallon bait drum will aid very well in determining size. If the back of the bear is near to or greater than the top of the drum, then you have a “big very likely male bear” say 300 to 400 pounds.
UPDATE
If looking for Boone and Crockett trophies, check out Jim Shockey’s article on field judging black bear.
https://www.boone-crockett.org/field-judging-black-bear
Shockey says, “Big bears are the toughest, meanest sons-of-a-guns in the valley, and they act it.”
For me, the fur must be in prime shape as well, not rubbed off.
END UPDATE
Look to identify male from female. Outfitters train hunters to avoid shooting female bears. Additionally, female bears are not unusually large as the massive 300 to 400 lb males.
Image Courtesy Wikipedia
Females with cubs or even older cubs give their sex away simply by being with cubs.
Further, female front legs taper from wide to narrow all the way to the narrow front paws, where male front legs are like large stove pipes like the above photo with no leg taper. Old mature bruins have smaller ears more on the side of the head and fat wide heads with a crease down the center of the skull as shown above.
If I encounter a black bear of the size above, I would make every effort to harvest him. If I could not arrow him, I would take him with rifle.
More soon….