September 23, 2005

• Bear Story

  I
  blogged about the shooting of this bear’s mother.  I think the
  followup story is worth sharing.  (photo credit:  Jim
  Lavrakas, Anchorage Daily News)

  Ever since their mother was gut-shot and
  killed during the midsummer climax of Russian River fishing, a female
  bear cub has stayed by her wounded sibling, sometimes allowing the male
  with a gimpy leg to eat fish she has hauled ashore.

  The male cub was shot in the leg the same
  weekend its mother died, perhaps in the same incident. Since then, the
  two half-grown orphan bears have remained at the river to feed on
  salmon. But it hasn’t been easy.

  The male bear limps and swims slower. Snatching fish appears to be more difficult.

  But to the amazement of tourists and bear-savvy locals, the female bear seems willing to share the salmon wealth.

  …
  The fate of the crippled bear — along with
  the cinnamon-colored female and a third cub that has disappeared –
  weighs on the minds of many Cooper Landing residents. Even as birches
  go yellow and the last sockeye spawners rot in the shallows, people say
  they’re still angry over the shooting of the well-known sow.

  “Every day I have more than one customer who
  comes in the store and says that he’s worried about that bear,” said
  Glenda Mitchell, who owns the Cooper Landing Grocery and Hardware store
  with her husband. “I don’t see how he can defend himself from another
  bear with that leg. And I’m concerned that he can feed himself.”

  …
  So far this year, 17 brown bears have been
  reported killed by people on the Kenai Peninsula, including at least
  seven sows of breeding age, Selinger said. Brown bears are considered a
  “species of concern” on the Peninsula with questions about their
  conservation and population still unanswered.

  …
  The bear family had been a remarkable sight
  for at least two seasons, often delighting anglers with their bold
  tolerance of people. But the cubs also occasionally misbehaved,
  according to some observers, raiding backpacks and stealing fish from
  people.

  …
  The sow was discovered dead in the forest
  from at least two bullet wounds during the first week of August. The
  three nearby cubs were agitated, and one was limping.

  A 26-year-old Anchorage man was later accused
  of shooting the mother on July 31 with a Chinese-made assault rifle and
  leaving the area without reporting what happened to authorities, as is
  required.

  Last month, Michael Oswalt pleaded not guilty
  in Anchorage District Court to six misdemeanors, including shooting a
  brown bear in a closed season, failing to salvage the hide and skull,
  and recklessly endangering people on the river. His trial is set for
  Nov. 14, according to the district attorney’s office in Anchorage.

  Within several weeks of the shooting, the
  boldest and smallest cub disappeared from the river, fate unknown,
  Selinger said. But the other two, a male and female, remained, with the
  male continuing to limp as they foraged for salmon.

  Selinger and three state biologists darted
  the male in late August with a tranquilizer so they could examine its
  condition. Even as the male went down, the female cub stayed close and
  ended up darted as well.

  The female bear was in good shape. The
  skinnier male bear had been shot in the joint of its left front leg,
  Selinger said. The wound was healed over and didn’t appear infected.
  The biologist worked the limb closely to check for a fracture or
  grating noise. It appeared stiff, he said, but sound.

  Selinger said they decided the two cubs had a good chance of making it if left alone on the river.

  “That bear will always have a limp, but bears
  survive that way,” he said. “If it can gather enough food and avoid
  being killed by other bears and stay out of trouble with humans, that
  bear has a good chance of surviving.”

  Doug O’Harra, Anchorage Daily News

  Full story at ADN.com.
  

  • 5:13 pm
  • 2 Comments