Breck volunteers that the general trend toward warmer temperatures also contributes, by shortening the length of the bears’ hibernation. In a 2017 study, he and six CPW biologists radio-collared 51 adult black bears and monitored the timing and duration of their hibernation, along with environmental factors. For every 1.8-degree Fahrenheit increase in temperature, hibernation shortened by about a week. Based on current climate change projections, black bears of the year 2050 will be hibernating 15 to 40 days less than they are now. That’s 15 to 40 more days out on the landscape looking for
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