In summer, bear activity increases in the interpopulation corridor territory, usually around beehives as bears are passionate honey lovers and they can travel long distances to obtain this sweet reward. During the last weeks, in collaboration with the beekeepers and the Regional Government of Castilla y León, we have known and looked into several data of presence of bears in different locations of the southern part of the interpopulation corridor, as Valverde del Curueño (Valdelugueros), Mallo de Luna (Barrios de Luna), Candanedo de Fenar (La Robla), La Vid de Gordón (La Pola de Gordón), and even near the city of Leon, in Pedrún de Torío and Riosequino de Torío (Garrafe de Torío).
In some of this municipalities, Brown Bear Foundation (Fundación Oso Pardo, FOP) is developing the European LIFE project Bear Defragmentation, with the financial support of Gas Natural Fenosa, to ensure the long-term viability of the Cantabrian brown bear population, defragmentating the interpopulation corridor and consolidating the genetic and demographic interchange between the two sub-populations. Data of presence allows us to obtain hair and faeces samples, for genetic analysis.
Collecting samples in a apiary visited by a bear
June 2014