A fourfold increase in the number of complaints in 2007 has led the Nevada Department of Wildlife to establish a hotline Northern Nevadans may call to report bear problems.
Last year, state personnel handled 1,531 bear complaints compared to 350 in 2006. Carson Valley was responsible for 27 percent of those calls, more than any other area.
The hotline, (775) 688-BEAR (2327), will allow residents to report bear sightings or incidents that are not life threatening.
Wildlife spokesman Chris Healy said that if there is a bear breaking into the house, residents should call 911.
"The best description is that if you think you need it, go ahead and use it," he said. "But with the advice that if you're in an urban interface neighborhood and see a bear walking through, be aware that others are calling. Just because you don't get a phone call back, doesn't mean we're not tending to the problem."
Healy said that last year it wasn't unusual for wildlife dispatchers to receive 25 calls on a single bear.
Because procedure was for dispatchers to call back, they would be swamped with calls, he said.
"It is a staffing challenge to get a call back from us when the goal is to get us out there," he said.
The hotline has a message line residents can use to record the location of a bear incident when a dispatcher can't answer.
Between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. the office is closed, but Healy said it is helpful to have information about bear activity.
"The goal of the department of wildlife is to keep the animals wild," he said. "We want to minimize conflict between wildlife and people. One of the reasons there is a conflict is that people put out an attractant, their garbage. Most people want us to make a reasonable effort to keep bears wild and keep them safely separated from humans."
Healy said dispatchers will refer people who call about bears getting into their trash to the department's Web site.
"If you're going to live urban interface, it is different from living in the city," he said. "We want to make sure they've eliminated the attractant."
The bear hotline is wired directly into NDOW's Dispatch Center in Reno. Normal business hours are 6 a.m. until 11 p.m. The hotline is for those who have bear problems.
"The hotline is designed to be more responsive to bear problems," said division of wildlife Director Ken Mayer. "We will do our best to respond to calls, but keep in mind that biologists and wardens have other duties as well, such as deer surveys or poaching investigations."
