Habituated Jackson Bear put down
Residents continue to give bears food rewards
by Wyoming Game & Fish
October 24, 2007
(Jackson) - Officials with the Wyoming Game & Fish Department report that they lethally removed a young male black bear from a subdivision near Moran on Tuesday after it had received several human food rewards and had become very bold. The bear was trapped on Tuesday after it had broken into and damaged a number of outbuildings and gotten into both bird and livestock feed. The bear had a history of frequenting homes in the area, venturing onto several resident’s porches, testing windows and had even torn wood panels off a garage door in an attempt to enter the garage of an occupied home on two occasions.
”This bear was as bad as any bear we’ve dealt with all summer,” said Wyoming Game and Fish Department Bear Management Officer, Mark Bruscino. “Of course, it’s not the bear’s fault, but it had been allowed to repeatedly received food rewards. It had become very bold and, unfortunately, we were left with no option but to put it down.”
Bruscino called it a “classic case” of how things typically progress when a bear is allowed to get human food rewards. “Bears that repeatedly get food rewards progressively get more bold around people, often begin to cause property damage in search of food and eventually become a threat to human safety, and at that point we’re left we few options,” said Bruscino. It’s very predictable and history clearly shows that a bear such as this would only continue with the same behavior if relocated.
Bruscino also noted that most residents in the area were doing a very good job of keeping their garbage, birdfeeders and other attractants secured, but others had not. “Unfortunately, some residents didn’t view this type of bear behavior as a problem,” said Bruscino. “We have to be respectful that these animals are wild animals and treat them as such.”
In a year when black bear conflicts have reached in an unprecedented high in the Jackson area, Game and Fish officials continue to urge residents to be vigilant in keeping bear attractants unavailable to bears in the coming weeks before bears begin to den for the winter. Officials say that some sows with cubs could start denning as early as late October, but other single bears may not den until late November or December.
Meanwhile, Game and Fish continues to receive reports of bears in developed areas in and around Jackson Hole. “This year we have seen bears in places we don’t normally see bears here in Jackson,” said Game and Fish Public Information Specialist, Mark Gocke. “Even if some residents haven’t ever had a bear visit their property, it could happen this year. We strongly recommend everyone take care of their garbage and other attractants regardless of where they live.”
Contact the Jackson Game and Fish office at 307-733-2321 or in-state only at 1-800-423-4113 to report any conflicts with bears. To obtain more information on living in bear country go to
www.livinginbearcountry.org.
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