If you were wondering whether bears can be found on Long Island which is the largest and longest island in the United States then you’ve come to the right article.
As, in this article, you’ll find the exact answer to this question and after you’ve read the answer to the main question then I’ll also answer a few more closely related questions that might be of interest to you as well.
I hope you learn a lot from this one!
Are there bears on Long Island?
Bears do not live on Long Island.
While there is a long-neglected and not successful Facebook group that claims to be devoted to bear hunting on Long Island, there is no credible evidence that bears presently inhabit the island, nor have they at any point in recent history.
Also, Long Island is highly urbanized, which makes it unsuitable for bear habitation.
The New York State Department of Environmental Conversation tracks bear populations and has determined that both the primary and secondary ranges of black bears within the state are north of New York City and Long Island.
Most of the black bear population stays within or near the Adirondacks and Catskill mountains, however, some occasionally wander into more developed and urban areas.
What is the bear population on Long Island?
The population of wild bears on Long Island is zero.
There is not presently a bear population there.
Bears do not inhabit the territory because it is highly urbanized and developed which makes it an unsuitable area in which to establish a den.
While transient bears have been spotted throughout upstate New York, and some have even been spotted in more developed and urban areas, most of the state’s bear population is found in the Adirondacks and Catskill mountains.
The New York State Department of Environmental Conversation has not reported credible sightings of bears on Long Island, and for at least two hundred years, naturalists have consistently observed that black bears are not found within the state until one reaches the more mountainous regions to the north.
Do black bears live on Long Island?
There are approximately eight thousand black bears that live in the state of New York.
However, none of them live on Long Island, nor do any other species of bear.
Most of the black bear population stays within or near the Adirondacks and Catskill mountains, although they occasionally travel through rural and semi-developed areas.
In recent years, some bears have been spotted within urban areas, though these sightings were not within New York City or on Long Island.
Were there ever bears on Long Island?
There may once have been a bear population on Long Island, but there hasn’t been an established population there for quite some time.
It is also possible that transient bears may have temporarily wandered around the island but, again, this hasn’t been the case for a very long time.
Samuel Griswold Goodrich’s 1856 book, A Pictorial Geography of the World, describes the wildlife of Long Island and New York state.
Goodrich states that deer are plentiful on the island, but that one will only find bears upon entering the Catskills.
Even back then, in the 19th Century, bears were not found on Long Island.
Can a bear be on an island?
Bears can live on islands and many do.
Bears are highly skilled swimmers, exhibiting remarkable speed.
Moreover, they are capable of swimming long distances.
Owing to this ability, they can be found on various islands.
For example, black and brown bears live on some of the islands that constitute the Alexander Archipelago off the coast of Alaska.
However, each island can only sustain a single species of bear, so the black and brown bear populations are not mixed on these islands.
Check out the video below if you want to see a documentary on polar bears that live on an Arctic Island.
What island has the most bears?
Admiralty Island is an island that contains around 1,600 brown bears.
It is located in the Alexander Archipelago off the coast of mainland Alaska and is approximately 15 miles southwest of the capital, Juneau.
It is just under 100 miles long and has well over 700 miles of coastline.
Although it is a relatively large island and ranks within the top ten US islands by area, the human population of Admiralty Island is only roughly 650 people.
This means that the bears outnumber the humans nearly three to one!
Given the surprisingly large brown bear population, the island boasts the highest density of brown bears in North America.
Do coyotes live on Long Island?
At one time, coyotes were quite common on Long Island.
However, this was before urbanization.
Today, there are only a small number of coyotes that still reside in this territory.
Of the nine that are known to live and mate on Long Island, most of them live near Long Island Sound in Nassau County, located on the western side of the island, and the northern part of the borough of Queens.
Are there mountain lions on Long Island?
Mountain lions, or eastern cougars, were originally distributed throughout North, Central, and South America.
However, they no longer reside on Long Island or in New York state more broadly.
Beginning in the late 19th Century, mountain lions were pushed out and exterminated in all states east of the Mississippi.
While there have been reported sightings within New York State, they were not native to the area and, in some cases, they may have been bobcats that were misidentified as mountain lions.
What other animals live on Long Island?
In addition to farm animals, such as horses, cows, goats, and pigs, there are some wild large-body mammals on Long Island.
These include bobcats, foxes, and coyotes.
Deer are among the most populous large-mammal species, and the New York State Department of Environmental Conversation estimates that over three thousand deer are killed by hunters on Long Island each year.
There are also non-releasable wild animals that are kept in captivity, including buffaloes and bears.
Common smaller mammals such as squirrels, rabbits, and mice, are, for example, abundant on Long Island.
Some of the larger bird species include bald eagles, owls, hawks, geese, and ducks.
The Long Island Game Farm is home to hundreds of exotic and rare species, including zebras, camels, and monkeys.
One of the many groundhogs which are said to forecast the arrival of spring on Groundhog Day is kept in Brookhaven.
It is known as Holtsville Hal and has been used to forecast the arrival of spring since 1996.
Conclusion
In this article, you’ve learned that bears cannot be found on Long Island.
You’ve also learned that Long Island is highly urbanized which makes it a very unsuitable island for bear habitation.
It is, however, possible that bears had lived in the territory of Long Island during the time that Long Island did not exist yet but this isn’t known.