Black bear hair is a traditional fly-tying material with a variety of applications. It is commonly used for streamer wings, such as in the Black Nosed Dace. Additionally, black bear hair is essential for traditional steelhead fly tying. It serves as an effective underwing material, supports softer wings, and is used in intruder collars. The fur is also suitable for creating mobile wings with volume and is occasionally used for larger nymph tails.
One notable fly that utilizes black bear hair is the Black Bear Green Butt, a classic Atlantic salmon fly popular among steelheaders in the Pacific Northwest. While the origins of this fly are somewhat unclear, it is often attributed to Harry Smith of Cherryfield, Maine, who is said to have tied the first Black Bear in the 1920s.
The American black bear (Ursus americanus), also known simply as the black bear, is a medium-sized bear species native to North America. It is the smallest and most widely distributed bear species on the continent. As an omnivore, its diet varies significantly based on the season and location, and while it typically inhabits forested areas, it may venture into human communities in search of food.
Despite their name, black bears exhibit a wide range of color variations. Their coats can be white, blonde, cinnamon, light brown, dark chocolate brown, or jet black, with many intermediate shades. Coastal Alaska and British Columbia are home to silvery-gray black bears with a blue luster on their flanks. In southwestern British Columbia, some bears are white or cream-colored, and albino individuals have been recorded. In humid regions like Maine, New England, and parts of the western United States, black coats are more common, though in the Rocky Mountains, only about 50% of black bears are black. Bears in northwestern North America are often cinnamon, blonde, or light brown, which can sometimes lead to confusion with grizzly bears. Grizzlies, however, can be distinguished by their shoulder hump, larger size, and broader, more concave skull.
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