Several Beaufort County neighbors are getting more visitors — of the four-legged, foraging variety.

Black bears have been sighted nightly making the rounds in Country Club Estates and Pamlico Plantation. What brings them into such close contact with people is hunger, according to North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission biologist Chris Kent.

“Between March and August, there’s not a lot of natural food available that time of year, so they’re hungry, and they’re just looking for easy food sources, and usually people are willing to cooperate unknowingly,” Kent said.

Easy food sources include trash cans, unprotected compost piles, outdoor pet food and birdfeeders — to which many Country Club Estates residents can attest, based on the number of mauled birdfeeders in the neighborhood.

“If you want prevent problems with bears, don’t feed them, whether intentionally or unintentionally,” Kent said.

He said those who’ve seen bears, or their foraging effects, in a neighborhood need only to put the food away and the bears will move on. He advised keeping trash cans confined either in a garage or with electric wire, which is relatively inexpensive and can be purchased at farm supply stores, and taking trash out just before scheduled pickup as opposed to leaving it overnight. Compost piles should be confined to tightly lidded containers, and any food kept outdoors — whether for chickens or pets — should also be kept in lidded containers. As for birdfeeders, he recommends giving them a summer break.

“I strongly encourage people to take birdfeeders down in March and don’t put them back up until August,” Kent said.

Wildlife Resources will not move bears that infiltrate neighborhoods, as that only moves the problem to another year and does not actually solve the problem, Kent said. The solution is for people to change their own habits and stop offering easy food sources, then the bears will move on to easily found dining elsewhere.

“We don’t trap and relocate bears — we feel it’s more important to educate people, because it’s almost always a people problem,” Kent said. “Ninety-nine percent of the time, it’s people that create the problem that make bears a nuisance. Bears just want to be bears.”

According to a WRC brochure, black bears tend to be shy and non-aggressive toward humans. WRC advises people who come in close contact with a black bear to stay calm, back away slowly and make lots of noise — never feed, approach, surround or corner a bear.

Kent said it’s estimated that 12,000-15,000 black bears live east of Interstate 95 in North Carolina, but one never hears of bear attacks.

“They’re extremely tolerant of humans,” he said. “Can a bear hurt you? Any wild animal can hurt you. They need to be treated with respect and given space, but black bears are very tolerant of people.”

In Country Club Estates, residents have reported seeing a mother and her juvenile cub foraging at night. According to an email from the Pamlico Plantation Home Owners Association, the 400-pound bear spotted in that neighborhood is thought to be injured in some way. Kent said injury could possibly affect a bear’s attitude toward humans, and he encouraged anyone with more information about the bear’s injuries to contact him.

“None of us wants to see an animal suffer,” he said.

Kent said the bears would not be an issue once the many crops grown in the area — corn, soybeans, peanuts — are ripe enough to eat. Until then, however, residents should lock the food away.

“Keep your birdfeeder down. It will learn that the food is not there. They’ll get it eventually. They will unlearn that behavior,” he said.

Kent encouraged anyone with questions or concerns regarding the local black bear population to contact him at 252-617-0019 or email christopher.kent@ncwildlife.org.