The American Black Bear is far from the docile, friendly creature often depicted in TV and movies. While it's able to live beside people when it's borders and boundaries are respected, events take a far different turn when those boundaries are crossed by bears -- or man. In Encounter: The Black Bear and Man, naturalist, outdoorsman and hunter Carl Semencic, author of Gladiator Dogs, explores those encounters, the tragedies that result and how education and respect leads to better outcomes for everyone, bear and man alike.
About the Author: Carl Semencic was born in New York City and still lives within walking distance of the city line. He is the product of the NYC public education system and he holds a Associates Degree in Liberal Arts from Queensborough Community College, a B.A. in British and American Literature from Queens College, and a Master's Degree and Doctorate in anthropology from State University of New York at Stony Brook where his areas of special interest were the archaeology of the Americas and American Indian studies. He also holds an Advanced Certificate which he received "With Distinction" from the Wine and Spirit Education Trust and he has been employed in the fine wine industry since 1982. He's known to have a seriously educated wine palate. Semencic is best known for his magazine articles and books about rare breeds of dogs. He wrote three books on dogs using his own name and two more using false names when the mail became impossible for him to deal with. Many of the breeds he wrote about were on the verge of extinction when he began to popularize them in his writing. Dr. Semencic is a life member of the National Rifle Association and an avid outdoorsman. He enjoys fishing, especially fresh water with ultra-lite equipment, hunting, but only with traditional muzzleloaders, kayaking, especially in the Great Okefenokee Swamp but also locally, and hiking. He has traveled the world both on business and for pleasure. He is also a member of the American Mensa Society. Semencic distrusts government and describes himself as a Conservative, "closed-borders" Libertarian. He's been married to the same woman since 1979 and they have raised two sons to adulthood. Of all the places he's been, he says that perhaps his all time favorite place is his own backyard. Either there or Queenstown, New Zealand.