The mauling of a cross-country skier by a grizzly bear in Grand Teton National Park March 7 combined with a recent grizzly bear sighting in Sunlight Basin northwest of Cody and tracks observed in the snow on the lower North Fork of the Shoshone River, has the Wyoming Game and Fish Department urging recreationists to practice the same bear caution they would in June. According to Grizzly Bear Conflict Officer Mark Bruscino, it is not unusual for some bears to emerge this early. Typically, boars emerge from their dens earlier than sows, with sows and young of the year cubs emerging in late April and early May, he said.
Bears wander big game winter ranges in early spring searching for winter-killed deer and elk.
This year s mild winter in northwest Wyoming will make it difficult for early emerging bears to find food and this could bring bears into conflict with people, Bruscino predicts. He cautions that now is the time to take the necessary precautions to avoid conflicts with bears. The majority of the people in Wyoming s grizzly range do a good job of keeping foods away from bears and although it seems early, it s never to early to become bear aware, Bruscino said. There were 112 human-grizzly conflicts reported last year in Wyoming. Although agricultural damage in 2000 was down compared to the 5-year average, property damage increased dramatically.