Today’s batch of burning questions, my smart-aleck answers and the real deal:

Question: What is the biggest black bear ever recorded in North Carolina? (Note: An Asheville reader sent me a picture of an enormous bear in his backyard, sitting by the pool, no less, and it got me thinking about largest Tar Heel bears). "This is the largest bear I’ve seen here in 19 years," the resident, Harry Brown said, noting that the picture was taken last fall before they closed their pool for the season. "(He) hung around for about 20 minutes before Mrs.Bear chased his butt home."

My answer: This bear in this photo looks like me after a summer cookout. Hot and uncomfortable, but just too dang full to shamble six feet into the pool.

Real answer: So, first of all, I loved this response from Justin McVey, a district biologist with the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission, when I asked him to estimate the weight of the bear in the photo:

"WOW. That’s a big one," McVey said. "I’d say at least 600 lbs. Don’t have a whole lot of experience with bears that big, so it’s hard to estimate. Looks like he’s enjoying everyone’s bird feeder and trash can and grill and ..."

More:What to do if a black bear builds a den in your yard: North Asheville man has an answer

That is an issue here in the mountains, as our bears in Asheville have become accustomed to eating out of bird feeders and trash cans and drive-thru restaurants. OK, I jest about bears hitting the drive-thru, but they are very comfortable here.

In fact, the Urban/Suburban Bear Study, a collaboration between N.C. State University and the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission, found a few years ago that city bears are generally healthier and better fed than their country counterparts because they supplement natural foods with food from human sources. The study's workers captured 245 bears between 2014-18.

More: Researchers learning more about Asheville's bears

That story noted that male bears can hit 600 pounds in the mountains and up to 800 pounds down east, where natural food is a little more plentiful.

More:Answer Man: Pop-off bear collars? Do bears overheat?

McVey checked records from bear harvests, the most accurate source for bear weights.

"In the mountains, since 1976, we’ve had seven bears harvested that were over 600 pounds," McVey said. "On the Asheville bear project we caught one that was 575 pounds — a pretty old bear. And I know this year there was a fella that harvested a 587-pound bear."

That's a lot of bear, but as mentioned earlier, they get even bigger in North Carolina's Piedmont and Coastal regions.

More:Answer Man: Where do 'urban bears' spend the winter?

"The largest black bear ever harvested in North America was 880 pounds, and that was actually harvested on the coast of North Carolina," McVey said. "I think it was back in the ‘90s, or early 2000s. That was a North American record."

Question: Please tell me this is just an ugly rumor! Is there, indeed, a question of political affiliation on the driver's license application at the DMV? And if so, WHY? Are we also asking for religious affiliations?

My answer: I guess they want to know if you veer left or right while driving.

Real answer: This is not the case for a driver's license application, although it may come up for another service.

More:Answer Man: DMV accident reporting system caused loss of Uber, Lyft gigs?

"The process that takes place in the driver license office is for the examiner to ask the customer if they wish to apply for voter registration or change party affiliation," said John Brockwell, spokesman for the N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles. "The examiner can assist the customer in the application which is sent to the State Board of Elections. An examiner will not ask any questions of the customer relating to religion."

This is the opinion of John Boyle. Contact him at 828-232-5847 or jboyle@citizentimes.com.

