How to tell?

[Superhunter333]

I'm hunting spring bear in Idaho this year and Ive never hunted bear exclusively so I'm kinda new to it i was curious how do you tell the difference between a boar and sow? i know sows have cubs sometimes and exposed nipples and boars have testes and are usually bigger but what other differences do you guys use to tell. I searched the topics for this question and couldn't find anything sorry if this has already been a topic.

[Davo]

Field judging bears is very difficult in general.  Boars tend to look like they have smaller ears (maybe just because their heads are bigger) and their ears also look like they are more on the side of the head versus a sow or smaller bear whose ears appear to be larger and placed more on the top of the head.  With a good pair of binoculars I start by glassing the head.  Boars also tend to have a sway about their walk or movement, they appear to sway from side to side more than a sow as they walk.  Boars also tend to have a belly that hangs lower to the ground but this might not be the case come spring.  I would check out and study a bunch of pictures/video and you can make out some small but helpful differences. That being said it can still be pretty tricky.  Good Luck.

-Davo   

[Coastal_native]

Well lets see...if you look down between their back legs... .

I'm actually curious to see what people say.  I have a fair amount of experience trapping and handling black bears and I still don't know.  I could stare at a bear from 5 ft away for 15 minutes and still be wrong from time to time.  The small bears are very hard to tell...and the big bears (250 lbs+) are boars more often than not.  I've been told there are certain facial features that give it away, such as a flat, round forehead with a concave profile for a boar .  Sows apparently have a head profile that is arc like (convex) from the top of the head continuing down to the tip of the nose.  I never was able to apply that.   After awhile it started to seem to me that at close range sows looked feminine in the face and boars looked masculine...sounds ridiculous.  I've also heard that the position of the ears is an indicator, but that's only ever proven usefull to me for sizing them.

I imagine billythekidrock will have some good info to share?

[carpsniperg2]

I am no expert by any means. But I look at the face a lot! I agree with coastal on this one. The smaller bears are a lot harder to judge then the bigger bears. The ears tend to show a lot more of the size. I have never been able to associate them with the sex of a bear. The look of the bears face can also hint to its sex. Like coastal said they can look feminine and the boars look more masculine. Flatter nose square head etc. Even some of the best well known bear hunters have a hard time telling the sex of bears.

[alwinearcher]

I would say a boar also usually has a longer look to his body. To me a boar looks leaner and longer then a sow. The sows will have a smaller front and and a big rear where as the boar will be more even front and back.

[Machias]

Superhunter333, you already hunting a particular area?  Already have hunting partners?  Just curious, I'll be baiting over there this year as well.

[Jason]

Superhunter333, you already hunting a particular area?  Already have hunting partners?  Just curious, I'll be baiting over there this year as well.

Is spring Bear in Idaho draw only?

[Machias]

Nope it's OTC.

[longrange7mm]

Looking at the Chest and front legs can also help you when your field judging a bear, on a mature bear from the front a boar has a broad chest and thick wrists a sow will look narrow chested and her front legs will narrow towards her wrists. From The side a boar will appear longer than a sow, big mature sows look short and squatty and a boar will look long with a big beer belly.  You can tell a big boar by watching him he will not be looking around acting nervous and he will walk around like he is the King of the Forrest. smaller bears and sows are always looking and listening for bigger bears.

[Ray]

I couldn't tell the difference until my 2nd year observing bears. I believe AlwineArcher has pretty much described it well.

smaller bears and sows are always looking and listening for bigger bears.

Very true.

[MtnMuley]

I would say a boar also usually has a longer look to his body. To me a boar looks leaner and longer then a sow. The sows will have a smaller front and and a big rear where as the boar will be more even front and back.

 

Also, the general appearance of a sow will look bigger than it is, due to their shorter, fatter appearance.  Thus, many of newcomers that shoot their first bear find considerable ground shrinkage.  While the boar might tend to look thinner and lengthy, his distinctively longer snout is an easy give away to his sex.  Now......... a lengthy, fat, long nosed bear, is the bear of choice to most bear hunters........just view Alwine's bear success pics this last fall.  They did outstanding.

[jackmaster]

run up and give him a feel :dunno:there is no sure fire method i have gotton lucky with the block head method if its real blocky and walks with a little more confidence then there is a good chance that its a boar. sows seem to cower when they walk and there heads are more slender bullit shaped

[alwinearcher]

I would say a boar also usually has a longer look to his body. To me a boar looks leaner and longer then a sow. The sows will have a smaller front and and a big rear where as the boar will be more even front and back.

 

Also, the general appearance of a sow will look bigger than it is, due to their shorter, fatter appearance.  Thus, many of newcomers that shoot their first bear find considerable ground shrinkage.  While the boar might tend to look thinner and lengthy, his distinctively longer snout is an easy give away to his sex.  Now......... a lengthy, fat, long nosed bear, is the bear of choice to most bear hunters........just view Alwine's bear success pics this last fall.  They did outstanding.

Exactly, A big Long nose is a dead give away..
Thanks! We got lucky...

[woodywsu]

a lengthy, fat, long nosed bear, is the bear of choice to most bear hunters

  Length of nose and body is key IMO. But I've been wrong before, once.

[upriver]

Males seem more lanky but like everyone else has said- it's not a science. Size is hard to tell sometimes as well. I've seen a few that look like trucks and you know they are big but other than a few times they are hard to tell.