Introduction to Noninvasive Hair-snare Sampling

Noninvasive hair-snare sampling requires the installation of hair snare stations (Hopkins et al. 2012). 100 feet of 4 barbed, 2-strand wire is wrapped around and fixed to trees, creating an enclosed perimeter (Hopkins et al. 2012). The barbed wire is about knee height, this helps reduce the possibility of catching young bears (Hopkins et al. 2012). Black bears will approach the barbed wire and either step over or under, while snagging hair on the barbs. We used sampling grids, where traps were placed 2 km apart from one another. Stations were placed by game trails, scat, and other evidence of bears in the area (Kendall et al. 2009). A bait pile is gathered in the middle of the trap from rotten logs, stumps, and detritus to achieve maximum absorbency of the liquid scent lure (Hopkins et al. 2012). Game cameras are installed on a nearby tree with clear visibility of the bait pile and barbed wire. Site diagrams are drawn, forest community information is gathered, and other data are collected. Counting barbs is important for establishing a relationship with the game camera. Later, hair samples on a particular barb and bears captured on video can be compared using the hair samples they left.