A new study from the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR), finds that these frosts can wipe out key food sources like berries, acorns, and pine nuts. With their natural buffet gone, bears are wandering into mountain towns and neighborhoods in search of a meal.
Researchers analyzed data from more than 500 black bears captured between 1998 and 2022 in the Sierra Nevada. They found a clear pattern: years with late frosts led to spikes in human-bear conflicts. In one season alone, bear complaints in the study area reached about 1,500 — roughly three times higher than an average year.
“When the frost hits late, it kills the whole food crop up there,” said Kelley Stewart, a UNR wildlife ecologist and co-author of the study. “So what happens is a loss of natural foods. And then the bears start looking.”…