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Humans and bears - Wild encounters
Humans and bears - Wild encounters
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Humans and bears - Wild encounters
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http://www.calgarysun.com/2016/11/02/mou...U.facebook
CANMORE — Two mountain bikers have been fined $700 each for riding on the Lake Minnewanka trail during a seasonal trail restriction in place to protect grizzly bears. The men — Daryl James Morgan and Mitchell Cole Neufeld — both pleaded guilty to the charge Wednesday in a Canmore courtroom through defence lawyer Tyson Dahlem. Court heard the two men were charged on July 17 after they triggered a remote camera set up on the trail. “It’s clearly marked and heavily barricaded,” said federal Crown prosecutor Anita Szabo, adding that the two bikers admitted that they rode to Aylmer Pass and back. They were each fined $700 each under the National Parks Act. Seasonal trail restrictions are in effect annually from July 10 to September 15 on the Lake Minnewanka Trail from the Stewart Canyon bridge to the east park boundary, Aylmer Pass Trail and Aylmer Lookout Trail. It’s considered one of the three core areas for grizzlies in Banff National Park because a number of female bears live and raise their cubs there. They depend on the buffaloberries, which are abundant in the area and in season at that time of year. The restriction, which is in place both to protect the grizzly bears and ensure public safety, requires hikers to be in groups of four or more and carry bear spray at all times. No cyclists are allowed on the Lake Minnewanka Trail and dogs are not permitted beyond the Stewart Canyon bridge. Anyone who does not comply can be charged under the National Parks Regulations and face a fine up to $25,000 — although the penalties are ultimately set by the courts in Alberta. A report tabled in the House of Commons this fall shows that Banff National Park had the highest number of violations in the past decade than any other national park across Canada. [email protected]
http://www.whitewolfpack.com/2016/10/rom...n.html?m=1
Romania has banned all trophy hunting of brown bears, wolves, lynx and wild cats in a surprise decision that gives Europe’s largest population of large carnivores a reprieve from its most severe and immediate threat. Romania has banned all trophy hunting of brown bears, wolves, lynx and wild cats in a surprise decision that gives Europe’s largest population of large carnivores a reprieve from its most severe and immediate threat.
Being caught at the scene of a crime does not prove guilt - The Grizzly, Our Greatest Wild Animal by Enos Abijah Mills.
A few grizzlies become cattle-killers; many grizzlies eat cattle they did not kill. On the live-stock ranges in the mountains of the West cattle die from many causes. They succumb to disease and to accidents. Winds proclaim carcass news and a feast to flesh-eaters near and far. Bears have amazing keen noses and often are the first to enjoy the feast. A grizzly I was following caught the scent of a carcass that was more than a mile away. He stopped and sniffed, then changed his course and set off for the carcass. The carcass was being watched. As the grizzly was the first animal to arrive after the kill, the owner of the cow concluded that he was guilty of the killing, and accordingly proceeded to kill him and to condemn all bears as cattle-killers. Yet, this cow had died from feeding too freely upon poisonous larkspur. I was once trailing a grizzly through the snow, when he came upon the trail of a mountain lion, which he followed. Farther along the lion killed a horse. When the grizzly came upon the scene, he drove the lion off. The following day, while having a second feast off the horse, he was discovered by a rancher, who at once procured dogs and pursued and killed the "famous horse-killing grizzly."
http://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/Blog/2013/December/In-His-Own-Words-Hunting-a-Grizzly.aspx
In His Own Words: Hunting a Grizzly December 13, 2013In the fall of 1884, Theodore Roosevelt went on a hunting trip to the Bighorn mountains. Although the intention was to bag an elk, he ended up shooting a grizzly bear, which he describes in a letter to his sister, Anna. This episode is described in more detail in his book, Hunting Trips of a Ranchman.“I shall not soon forget the first one I killed. We had found where he had been feeding on the carcass of an elk; and followed his trail into a dense pine forest, fairly choked with fallen timber. While noiselessly and slowly threading our way through the thickest part of it I saw Merrifield, who was directly ahead of me, sink suddenly to his knees and turn half round, his face fairly ablaze with excitement. Cocking my rifle and stepping quickly forward, I found myself face to face with the great bear, who was less than twenty five feet off—not eight steps. He had been roused from his sleep by our approach; he sat up in his lair, and turned his huge head slowly towards us. At that distance and in such a place it was very necessary to kill or disable him at the first fire; doubtless my face was pretty white, but the blue barrel was as steady as a rock as I glanced along it until I could see the top of the bear fairly between his two sinister looking eyes; as I pulled the trigger I jumped aside out of the smoke, to be ready if he charged; but it was needless, for the great brute was struggling in the death agony, and, as you will see when I bring home his skin, the bullet hole in his skull was as exactly between his eyes as if I had measured the distance with a carpenters rule. This bear was nearly nine feet long and weighed over a thousand pounds. Each of my other bears, which were smaller, needed two bullets apiece; Merrifield killed each of his with a single shot.”
President Teddy Roosevelt talks grizzly: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4rRgx3hRwK4
The Grizzly, Our Greatest Wild Animal by Enos Abijah Mills.
Trailing is adventurous. Many of the best lessons of woodcraft that I have learned, several of the greatest and most beneficial outings that I have had, were those during which I followed, sometimes day and night, that master of strategy, the grizzly bear. A few times in trailing the grizzly I have outwitted him, but more frequently he has outwitted me. Every grizzly has speed, skill, and endurance. He has mental capacity and often shows astounding plan, caution, courage, and audacity. Trailing without a gun is red-blooded life, scouting of the most exacting and manly order. The trailer loses himself in his part in the primeval play of the wilderness. It is doubtful if any other experience is as educational as the trailing of the grizzly bear. 
SAVAGED BY A SLOTH BEAR
Farmer who fought terrifying three-hour battle with clawed beast astonishes medics by surviving MASSIVE head injuries caused in the attack Miraculous mushroom grower staggers nearly three miles with face hanging off to get help PI 26th August 2016, 11:26 am [b]A FARMER has somehow survived horrific head injuries he suffered from a terrifying three-hour bear mauling. [/b] Miracle man Jube Valanti Adveppache, 58, had his face ripped open by the clawedbeast but managed to stagger for miles to seek medical help.  *This image is copyright of its original author CESurvivor … Brave Jube Valanti Adveppache managed to stumble to safety after the three-hour mauling The mushroom grower was working his fields in southern India when a vicious sloth bear — which is known for its aggression — attacked without warning. Jube later told police how the animal kept up its vicious assault for THREE gruelling hours.The 130kg monster kept breaking off its attack before striking again in a torturous rampage.  *This image is copyright of its original author GETTY Agressive … Sloth bears are known for their viciousness and have killed dozens in recent years When it thought Jube was dead it moved off into the dense forests around Haliyal in Karnataka State. Brave Jube then managed to stagger nearly three miles while suffering from heavy bleeding to get to his village, he told officials. Doctors have described Jube’s speedy recovery as astonishing. He has been moved from an intensive care unit to a regular hospital to continue his recovery. Pictures show the extent of his wounds, with huge gashes across his face and a heavily swollen right eye.  *This image is copyright of its original author Despite their comic appearance, sloth bears have been known to kill and even eat people Sloth bears are native to the Indian subcontinent. They have been responsible for the deaths of dozens of people in recent years as humans increasingly encroach on their natural habitat. Just yesterday two people were mauled to death in Chhattisgarh province by the massive creature. https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/1677371/farmer-who-fought-terrifying-three-hour-battle-with-clawed-beast-astonishes-medics-by-surviving-massive-head-injuries-caused-in-the-attack/
In common with the grizzly, the sloth bear is a fighter and not much of a tree-climber. Interesting post Vinjay.
(11-21-2016, 01:34 PM)brotherbear Wrote: In common with the grizzly, the sloth bear is a fighter and not much of a tree-climber. Interesting post Vinjay. Sloth bear actually fruits,honey and insects eater.So, it must be a very good tree climber.As a black in color and mainly active in dark (nocturnal) not many videos are there. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SL5KTkk9pSY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7qjWRs9G_Ek A 120kg bear living among wolves,dhole pack,leopard and tiger should and must be aggressive and fighter.
Compared with a sun bear or a black bear ( Asiatic or American ) the sloth bear is a slow and awkward climber. On any video or documentary I have yet to witness a sloth bear darting up a tree to escape danger, such as a leopard or a tiger. He either runs or fights. Also, feeds heavily upon ants and termites.
http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/an...loth-bear/ Sloth bears feed predominantly on termites and ants and employ a well-evolved method to dig them out. Their long, curved claws are used for penetrating nest mounds, which can be rock-hard. Once they’ve opened a hole, they blow away excess dirt then noisily suck out the insects through a gap in their front teeth. To do so, they close their nostrils and use their lips like a vacuum nozzle. Beyond insects, sloth bears feast on a variety of fruit and flowers, including mango, fig, and ebony. They are also known to scale the occasional tree to knock down a bee honeycomb, which they will then enjoy on the ground below. It is this habit that’s given rise to their nickname, honey bears. (11-21-2016, 06:11 PM)brotherbear Wrote: Compared with a sun bear or a black bear ( Asiatic or American ) the sloth bear is a slow and awkward climber. On any video or documentary I have yet to witness a sloth bear darting up a tree to escape danger, such as a leopard or a tiger. He either runs or fights. Also, feeds heavily upon ants and termites. They are capable of galloping faster than running humans.[17] Although they appear slow and clumsy, sloth bears are excellent climbers, including cubs.[18] They climb to feed and rest, though not to escape enemies, as they prefer to stand their ground. They are capable of climbing on smooth surfaces and hanging upside down like sloths.[11] They are good swimmers, and primarily enter water to play.Sloth bears are the most nocturnal of bears.Sloth bears are extremely fond of honey. The large canine teeth of sloth bears, relative to both its overall body size and to the size of the canine teeth of other bear species, and the aggressive disposition of sloth bears may be a defense in interactions with large, dangerous species such as tigers, elephants, and rhinoceroses. Sloth bears occasionally chase leopards from their kills.Asian elephants apparently do not tolerate sloth bears in their vicinity. The reason for this is unknown, as individual elephants known to maintain their composure near tigers have been reported to charge bears.[5] The Indian rhinoceros has a similar intolerance for sloth bears, and will charge at them   wiki
Vinjay, right here in 'Carnivorous and Omnivores Animals, Excluding Felids' there is a topic page on the 'Sloth Bear'. Please feel free to contribute information. I hope you will.
The Grizzly, Our Greatest Wild Animal by Enos Mills.
Trailing the grizzly without a gun is the very acme of hunting. The gunless hunter comes up close, but he lingers to watch the bear and perhaps her cubs. He sees them play. Often, too, he has the experience of seeing wilderness etiquette when other bears or animals come into the scene. The information that he gathers and his enjoyment excel those obtained by the man with a gun. Roosevelt has said and shown that the hunter whose chief interest is in shooting has but little out of the hunt. Audubon did a little shooting for specimens. Wright had as many thrills with the camera as with the rifle. Adams was far happier and more useful with his live grizzlies than he was killing other grizzlies. Emerson McMillin was satisfied to hunt without either gun or camera. The words and sketches of Ernest Thompson Seton have given us much of the artistic side of the wilderness. Dr. Frank M. Chapman explored two continents for the facts of bird-lore and in addition to his books prepared the magnificent bird-groups in the American Museum of Natural History. Thoreau enjoyed life in the wilderness without a gun. But John Muir was the supreme wilderness hunter and wanderer. He never carried a gun. Usually he was in the wilds alone. He spent years in a grizzly bear country. But the wealth of nature-lore with which he enriched his books make him the Shakespeare of nature. The man without a gun can enjoy every scene of nature along his way. He has time to turn aside for other animals, or to stop and watch any one of the countless unexpected wild-life exhibitions that are ever appearing. Then, too, he hears the many calls and sounds, the music of the wilds. The wild places, especially in grizzly bear land, are crowded with plants and with exhibitions of the manners and the customs of animals, and are rich in real nature stories being lived with all their charm and their dramatic changes.
http://www.grizzlytimes.org/single-post/2016/08/25/Yellowstones-Grizzly-Dead-2015-Shatters-Records-for-Grizzly-Bear-Deaths
Yellowstone's Grizzly Dead: 2015 Shatters Records for Grizzly Bear Deaths August 25, 2016 Louisa Willcox Today, thousands of people are gathered in Yellowstone to celebrate the centennial birthday of the National Parks, which many say is perhaps the best idea that America has ever had. But no one is in Gardiner, Montana, today to mourn the dead. And indeed, most do not know of the catastrophe that hit the grizzly bear, one of the Park’s most beloved icons, in 2015, when 85 bears died out a population of perhaps 717 animals. Last week, government data was released showing that bear deaths during 2015 shattered previous records, and that thresholds for allowable female deaths were exceeded by a large margin (link). The death toll of 85 grizzlies is not an anomaly, but rather the most recent manifestation of a decade of unsustainable high grizzly bear mortality. If current trends continue – and this year is poised to break another record – the hard fought progress towards recovery of Yellowstone’s grizzly bear population will be quickly reversed. The federal government’s proposal to strip Endangered Species Act protections later this year and allow sport hunting will exacerbate the current threats to grizzly bears in and around the nation’s oldest park. The US Geological Survey, a sister agency to the Park Service and responsible for compiling data on Yellowstone’s bear population, has still failed to release its long-delayed annual report covering 2015—a year that is now nearly nine months gone. But a summary of the report, issued last week in response to public outcry, tells all – despite the deliberately obtuse and convoluted language. What do these deaths mean, and what will happen to Yellowstone’s magnificent grizzly bears if hunting is legalized and added to what is already excessive human-caused mortality? The Grizzly Dead According to the US Geological Survey’s Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team (IGBST), 61 Yellowstone grizzly bears are known to have died during 2015. (link). And this doesn’t account for the additional 24 that were thought to have died, but went unreported, most of which were also probably killed by humans. This breaks the record for annual grizzly bear deaths by any cause since 1959, which is when data on mortalities started to be compiled. And it breaks my heart. Applying a calculation that accounts for unreported bear deaths, the government estimates 70 bears died inside the Demographic Monitoring Area (DMA), which constitutes the core of grizzly bear habitat (link). Adding the 11 known and 4 unknown but probable deaths outside the DMA, the total death toll is 85 bears. This is a shocking 11% of the estimated population of 717 grizzly bears -- and a 20% increase above the next-highest year, 2010, when 68 bears died. A full rundown of the body count and what it means can be found here (link). According to the IGBST, the dead included 25 adolescent and reproductive females. But according to the government’s own protocols, no more than 18 females, or 7.6% of the total, can be killed without causing a population decline. Twenty five dead mothers, including those who never had a chance to bear young, constitutes a huge violation of the government’s limits, and should make federal managers pause in their headlong rush to delist the population. Females are the ultimate arbiters of population health. It should be noted too that a mom’s death has deadly consequences for her orphaned cubs. This year is shaping up to be another blood bath for bears, with 27 known deaths so far (link), or roughly 38 animals if an estimate of unreported deaths is included. These numbers are overwhelming and under-reported in the media. And most of the deaths are completely unnecessary. More on this later. Of Foul Play and Thuggishness Of the bears killed last year, 19 are being investigated as possible poaching incidents (link). This includes the Yellowstone Park celebrity grizzly, Scarface, who was murdered by a big game hunter outside the Park border last fall. This is almost three times the next highest number of potential poaching incidents recorded during 2012, when 7 deaths were under investigation. It is almost certain that these deaths were caused by hunters (or by poachers, although the line between hunters and poachers is often blurred). In the past, deaths under investigation fell into the categories of hunter-related incidents, self-defense kills (often a euphemism for a hunter-related incident), and black bear hunters mistaking a grizzly for a black bear. What is going on? We may never know for sure, with so few eyes and ears in the backcountry, as federal budgets and the number of backcountry personnel shrink. But this could well be more of the notorious “Shoot, Shovel and Shut up” behavior that landed grizzly bears on the endangered species list in the first place. In other words, armed thugs tired of waiting for delisting are looking for opportunities to illegally kill bears. An article in the Jackson Hole News and Guide gives a glimpse of the involved mindset (link). Two years ago, in Wyoming’s remote Thorofare area, one party of hunters shot into a group of five grizzly bears feeding on the carcass of an elk they had killed. They killed a 17 year old radio-collared bear, Number 764, with .44 and .357 magnum slugs. The hunters had watched the situation for many minutes and had the chance to walk away. This was not a surprise, defense of life situation. It was an act of raw aggression. The case was not prosecuted. Almost none are. Another incident occurred during 2010 on Mountain Creek in the Teton Wilderness (link). A grizzly bear was killed at an outfitter camp. The protocol for dealing with bears that get near camps like this one is to try to scare them away with noise, dogs and shooting cracker shells. A worker who shot the involved bear in the chest and abdomen said later he intended to “hit it in the ass.” “Son of a @#$+* wouldn’t leave,” he said. Thuggish behavior by state officials could also be a factor in decisions to kill more bears, even those that have not caused problems with people. One good example was Grizzly 760, grandcub of Teton Park celebrity mom 399, who was killed by Wyoming and Game and Fish officials in 2014 even though he had never obtained a food reward from people and had never threatened, let alone hurt, anybody or their livestock (link). Behaving like playground bullies in the push to delist Yellowstone’s grizzlies (link), states wildlife managers seem to be acting as if delisting has already happened and, along with it, a return to open season on bears. In fact, according to state plans, several hundred bears could be killed within a few years after delisting as part of deliberate efforts to reduce numbers of grizzly bears in the Yellowstone region, potentially to critically low levels. Fear, aggression, and lack of understanding and heart. These are the kind of ungenerous and perverse impulses that seem to drive the killing spree of the last two years. The polar opposite of what is being celebrated in Yellowstone today: respect and reverence for nature. In her recent book, The Hour of Land, Terry Tempest Williams called national parks “portals and thresholds of wonder,” and the “breathing spaces for a society that increasingly holds its breath.” Unfortunately, there is not much evidence of wonder or expansive generosity on the part of our grizzly bear managers or many back-country hunters. In this time of commemoration of parks and wild nature, it grieves me to think that things could get worse for grizzly bears if they are delisted this year and made the victims of hunting designed to entertain a perverse few. Mums the Word on Bear Death Toll The government bureaucrats responsible for managing Yellowstone’s grizzlies have responded to last year’s spike in potentially illegal mortalities with stunning silence. The topic of these deaths was a non-issue at recent meetings in Bozeman, West Yellowstone, Jackson and Missoula, which were instead a stage to stroke managers’ egos, glorify agency “successes,” and promote delisting (link). Although managers knew about the record high mortalities, they remained mum. A political mandate to perpetuate this silence could well explain why the IGBST has not yet released its 2015 report, which includes a lot of bad news. If not, the extent to which delay furthers the political agenda of delisting is a striking coincidence. The only managers who have not been silent are Yellowstone Park Superintendent Dan Wenk and Grand Teton Park Superintendent David Vela, who continue to protest state plans for hunting grizzly bears outside the park borders, and the deliberate exclusion of the Park Service by the states from any involvement in development of post-delisting hunting policies (link). But it seems that state managers, aided by the US Fish & Wildlife Service, are committed to expediting delisting and hunting grizzly bears, protests of Park Service officials notwithstanding. Perversely, state wildlife managers not only seem to think that hunting is the only proper “use” of an animal as noble as the grizzly bear, but also that it is morally acceptable to legalize poaching rather than try to deter it. Which begs the question why state managers are so eager to placate people who behave like criminals. Perhaps the answer has something to do with the nature of people who populate state management agencies. Almost to a man, they promote trophy hunting, and, by doing so, condone the notion that killing animals for entertainment is not only acceptable, but laudable. The US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), charged with restoring imperiled species on behalf of all of us, seems to have lost its way. I previously wrote about the heartless even mindless behavior of FWS bureaucrats. The metaphor that came to mind was that of a zombie in service of some relentless master (link). It is both tragic and contrary to the spirit and intent of the Endangered Species Act that the FWS has enslaved itself to the agenda of state politicians who see grizzly bears only as an inconvenience or simply as “things” to be dominated and killed (link). Despite its mandate – and what could be a more compassionate mission than to save species – the FWS is now catering to the thugs. All of the government agencies have banded together perpetrate an age-old tactic of avoiding the problem by attacking their critics, including scientists, grizzly bear advocates, and the roughly 50 Indian Tribes that have come out in opposition to delisting. At a recent meeting of federal and state managers, the Tribes, which have objected to hunting grizzly bears on spiritual and cultural grounds, were criticized by these bureaucrats as being “out of touch with reality” (link). Yet the Tribes are representing the interests of many of us by challenging the ethos of Manifest Destiny that drove the genocide of Indian people and the slaughter of millions of buffalo, wolves and grizzly bears, all in the name of “progress.” The Tribes, and the multitudes who today commemorate the wisdom of preserving parks, share the view that nature should be preserved in a spirit of wonder, not greedily exploited for the profit of a few, nor served up to slake the blood-lust of an even smaller minority yet. Unbearable Killing The government’s own data puts the lie to claims being made by state and federal bear managers that Yellowstone’s grizzly bear population can absorb the high levels of mortality that we’ve seen during recent years. The population is no longer growing, and more likely has been declining since 2007 (link). IGBST data showed a substantial decline of roughly 50 bears in estimated population size between 2014 and 2015. This trend has been driven by the loss of two former key native grizzly bear foods, cutthroat trout and whitebark pine (link), and subsequent shifts in diet. Bears have turned increasingly to foraging on meat, mostly cows and big game, which draws them into mounting conflicts with ranchers and hunters (link). As the US Fish and Wildlife Service has long recognized, most bear-human conflicts are avoidable. The solutions are not starry eyed, but practical. They include paying attention and being prepared to encounter bears in the backcountry (link). Carrying bear pepper spray (link). Keeping clean camps. Dealing responsibly with dead game to help keep grizzly bears alive. These are but a few of the tools of coexistence. Our choice to use them rather than bullets depends on the stories we choose to tell ourselves about our place in the world, as well as that of animals such as grizzly bears. Today, we have the power of life and death over the Great Bear. If unchecked, an armed and hostile few, aided by the government, will continue to indulge in violence and aggression that could push Yellowstone’s grizzly bears back to the brink of extinction. The interests of the majority who want to see bears alive and flourishing around the nation’s oldest park could be sacrificed for those of a death-oriented minority. If grizzly bears are delisted and hunted, we may, in a few short years, wake to find them at rock bottom levels, hunkered down inside the borders of the Yellowstone and Grand Teton Parks. And shot, as wolves are now, and as Scarface was last fall, if they dare step across the border. Is this our vision for the future of our national parks and the wildlife that depend on them? |
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