From: align@Msu.oscs.montana.edu (Greg Notess)
Subject: Re: Bears attacking people?
Reply-To: align@Msu.oscs.montana.edu (Greg Notess)
Organization: Montana State University
Date: Wed, 14 Oct 1992 01:03:25 GMT

In article <1992Oct13.195039.25383@afterlife.ncsc.mil>, mssmith@afterlife.ncsc.mil (M. Scott Smith) writes:
>I read with interest the story of the bear killing a person in Yellowstone,
>and I think it's interesting that there are people who are strongly for
>killing the bear(s) and strongly against it.
>
>So, I have a few questions.
>
>First, I didn't hear any details about what happened at Yellowstone --
>exactly what did the person do to provoke the mother bear?  Did he just
>stumble upon the bear and her cubs, accidentally, and get attacked?  Or
>was he making funny faces at the bear, or what?

The attack was in Glacier, not Yellowstone.  The hiker was hiking alone, and
there were no eye-witnesses, so the the details are unknown.  The rangers are
guessing (based on their findings at the scene) that it was a surprise
encounter.  The film in a camera found by his body only had pictures of scenery,
so it does not appear that he was trying to sneak up on the bears for pictures. 
Portions of the body were eaten by the grizzly.  This is considered unusual. 
In most attacks that are provoked by a surprise encounter, the bears leave the
body after the attack.  When rangers arrived to retrieve the body, they were
charged by the bear.  Because the bear(s) consumed some of the body, the
decision was made to kill the bears.  Since the rangers were charged, they were
able to identify the grizzlies (who had distincitve markings anyway).  BTW,
the sow and two cubs have now been killed.

>(Basically, was it HIS fault?  What I've read so far seems to indicate that
>it was his fault, although I haven't seen evidence that it was.  If he was
>just hiking and got attacked by the bear, I would tend to feel pity for
>him and I wouldn't have the attitude that "yay, finally the bear strikes
>back!"  So please fill me in on the details.)

His fault?  I doubt it.  There's no evidence that I have heard that supports
that, beyond the fact that he was hiking alone.  Frankly, I pity him and the
bears.  

>I can understand the uproar to not shoot the bear and her cubs because they
>had killed a man, but if I knew the person who was killed, I don't think
>I would have the same emotion.  (Again, this is prompted by not knowing
>the details of whether the man did anything to provoke the attack.)  If
>the man was innocently hiking, and the bear attacked him, I would tend
>to think that the bear would attack other people later on, especially
>having tasted human blood.

I don't think there is any research that would say that the bears would predate
humans because of this encounter, but that is certainly the fear.  

>Finally, I'd like to hear info about bears and what one must worry about
>when hiking or camping in bear country.  If I go hiking with a group of
>people, would that discourage a bear from attacking me (assuming the
>bear had a reason to, like I accidentally stepped on her cubs' paw)?

Hike in a group (the larger the better).  Don't surprise a grizzly.  If you are
in a area that a grizzly might be in, make some type of noise.  The three most
dangerous situations are 1) a sow with cubs, 2) a grizzly protecting a carcas
(or other food source), and 3) surprising a grizzly.  Note that this
unfortunate hiker hit both 1 and 2.  
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|Greg Notess, Reference Librarian | Internet: align@msu.oscs.montana.edu    |
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