Attacks are rare and excessive warnings about them create unnecessary fear.
Balanced and factual information about bears is hard
to find. Providing that information is the main goal of the North
American Bear Center where the bears themselves provide much of the
information through video footage and research data.
Black bears use sounds, body language, and scent-marking to express their emotions of the moment.
The main thing that helped me get over my fear of bears was learning their language—learning to interpret bear bluster in terms of their fear rather than my fear—learning that behaviors I thought were threatening were really expressions of their own apprehension. - Lynn L. Rogers, Ph.D., 2007
Amiable sounds are grunts and
tongue clicks used by mothers concerned for their cubs and by bears
approaching other bears to mate or play. Cubs make a motor-like
pulsing hum when they nurse or are especially comfortable.
This is probably the most common question we hear.
The standard answer nationwide is, "Speak calmly and back away slowly." This is good advice. It identifies you as a person, shows that you are non-threatening, and gives the bear space.
Is following this advice necessary to avoid an attack? No.
