The Louisiana Black Bear: Last Stand in the Tensas Bottomlands

The Louisiana black bear — the subspecies that inspired Teddy Roosevelt's 'teddy bear' after a 1902 hunting trip in the delta — was listed as threatened in 1992 when fewer than 150 remained. The Tensas River National Wildlife Refuge protects 71,000 acres of bottomland hardwood forest that is the bear's primary habitat. Conservation efforts, habitat corridors, and strict protections worked: the population rebounded past 700, and the bear was delisted in 2016. The refuge remains the best place to see these animals in the wild, especially along the auto tour route at dawn.