Huang has been leading a research project funded by the Ministry of the Interior on the ecology of the endangered Formosan Black Bear.

Huang, who has been conducting research on the Formosan Black Bear for more than ten years, has captured fifteen black bears in the field, with more than half exhibiting paws or limbs that have been amputated by man-made traps.

“It is without question that poaching still goes on in the field and threatens the bears’ existence,” said Huang.

Formosan Black Bears were listed as endangered animals in 1989 under the Taiwan’s Culture Heritage and Conservation Law.

The bears are also protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which bans all international trade in any products from the species.

Researchers said that the real problem in protecting the bears is the lack of basic details on the current status of the population and distribution, as well as the bears’ reproduction and mortality rates.

Huang’s field research team has employed a wide variety of techniques in an effort to gain a better understanding of the conditions of the Formosan Black Bear.

Recently, the team used a dog to sniff out vomit and droppings from the Formosan Black Bear in the mountains near Yushan National Park.

Genetic analysis of the droppings can determine the number of bears that are present in the area as well as the bear’s health condition.

The location of the vomit and droppings also indicates the distribution of the bears around the Yushan National Park.

Huang’s research team also utilizes radio tracking to pinpoint the location and movements of the Formosan Black Bears.

Each captured bear is given a radio transmitter collar which emits signals that can be detected by the research team’s radio receivers.

Triangulation of the radio signals by several radio tracking equipment from different locations allows the researchers to pinpoint the animal’s location.

The accumulation of the location data enables the researchers to find out the bear’s moving routes, home range, and patterns of habitat use.

Researchers said that hunting of Formosan Black Bears has been driven by the bear’s economic value in traditional Chinese medicine, and as a prized Chinese delicacy.

Traditional Chinese medicine records state that dried bear gall can be used to release fevers, calm nerves, brighten eyes, and neutralize venoms, while bear fat can be used to cure weakness, strengthen muscles, and remove parasites.

Bear paws have been considered a prized Chinese delicacy, and are used to expel coldness and increase energy.

Studies indicate that black bears were highly prized by wildlife-product stores for their rarity and “medical value.”

A dead black bear has an estimated market price of over NT$200,000, researchers said.

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