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State biologist: Nottoway has robust black bear population; residents urged to secure trash and feeders
Summary
A Virginia wildlife biologist told supervisors that black bears have rebounded in Nottoway County and urged residents to secure trash and remove bird feeders to reduce human‑bear conflicts.
Katie Martin, the state’s deer/bear/turkey biologist, told the Nottoway County Board of Supervisors on June 26 that black bear numbers have rebounded across the Piedmont and that Nottoway County offers very good habitat.
Martin said bears were extirpated locally in the early 1900s but have steadily returned over the past several decades. She said Nottoway sits in the Virginia black‑bear management Zone 12 that includes Lunenburg and Charlotte counties; harvests in the county were 35 last year and 45 the year before, she told the board.
The nut graf: Martin said the two most common causes of human–bear conflict are unsecured trash and bird feeders — together accounting for about 60 percent of conflict calls — and urged residents to secure dumpsters, remove feeders when bears are present and consider electric fencing for chicken coops.
Martin explained the state manages bears by zone because animals move long distances. She also described recent disease reports in the region, including sarcoptic mange, and asked residents to report bears with missing hair or crusty lesions to the department’s conflict line at 1‑855‑571‑9003.
Supervisors asked about timing, damage to crops (corn and peanuts were specifically mentioned) and how to reduce attractants. Martin recommended removing easy food sources and noted that hunting seasons and harvest levels have been adjusted to stabilize populations.
Ending: Martin left brochures and the wildlife conflict line number for residents and said department staff can provide local guidance on securing trash and livestock feed.
