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Grizzly cubs sought after mother stabbed
Fish and wildlife officers are searching for three orphan grizzly bear cubs after a man fought and killed their mother near Grande Prairie Wednesday.
By The Edmonton JournalAugust 18, 2007Be the first to post a comment
Fish and wildlife officers are searching for three orphan grizzly bear cubs after a man fought and killed their mother near Grande Prairie Wednesday.
The man came between the mother and her cubs while looking for elk in preparation for the bow-hunting season. When the female grizzly attacked, he stabbed her three times with a hunting knife, then fled across a field, screaming for help, before a neighbour came to his rescue.
The man is recovering in a Grande Prairie hospital. He had bites, scratches and a broken limb.
The bear fled after the man stabbed it. Her body was found roughly 30 metres from where the attack took place.
"Wish him well for me," said Greg Flaaten, a 42-year-old Banff resident mauled by a black bear one year ago.
Flaaten was attacked while biking about seven kilometres outside the town of Banff. The bear dragged him off the bike and about 70 metres into the bush, where it ate much of Flaaten's shoulder, back and part of his arm.
He was with the bear an hour and 40 minutes before park wardens shot it and rescued him. He still faces monthly reconstructive surgery to graft muscle tissue from his leg to his arm. But if doctors don't see progress soon, he'll lose the arm.
"I had a knife, too, but I wasn't able to get to it. Sometimes you're just not able to defend yourself against an animal that powerful and well-equipped for taking prey down. ... I guess I looked like an easy target that day."
Flaaten won't talk about the attack itself. "I know everyone is interested, but recounting the details doesn't help me get past it."
The man involved in Wednesday night's attack also requested privacy. He asked hospital officials not to release any information to the media.
A volunteer firefighter who responded Wednesday night described him as being in his 30s, six-feet tall and of average build. He is not from the community of Grovedale, where the attack took place, but had been asking several farmers in the area if he could hunt on their land, neighbours said.
Johann Wall was the first to hear the man's cries.
"I was working outside on my truck when I heard him scream and yell for help," Wall said. He jumped in his van and drove down the road and up a hill. "I saw him come running across the field," Wall said. "When he laid down that's when he started to feel the pain."
Fish and wildlife officers found the bear's carcass Thursday morning and set traps for the cubs.
"What we're hoping is we can relocate them out of the area and release them back into the wild," said Alberta Sustainable Resource Development spokesman Darcy Whiteside.
The bear's carcass has been sent to Edmonton for a full autopsy. Officials have confirmed it was a grizzly.
The attack happened on private land near an oat field and a dense, swampy area, Whiteside said. The cubs were still missing Friday evening.
Maurice Nadeau, president of Alberta Fish & Game Association, said it's common practice for hunters to go out before the season to scout where animals are most likely to be.
It's easy to surprise a bear because the scout has to be quiet. "It's a risk we take," he said.
"Especially this time of year, when you go out, make noise," Whiteside added, pointing to the ministry's website for bear-smart tips.
Jasper park warden Steve Malcolm said he's never heard of anyone fighting off and killing a grizzly. An adult grizzly weighs between 350 pounds and 650 pounds and will be searching for food at this time of year, trying to bulk up for the winter, he said. It's much larger than a black bear and generally lives farther from human homes.
"If you get a grizzly bear that is protecting her cubs, she's going to do everything she can. That's a pretty typical situation."
Fish and wildlife officers are searching for three orphan grizzly bear cubs after a man fought and killed their mother near Grande Prairie Wednesday.
By The Edmonton JournalAugust 18, 2007Be the first to post a comment
Fish and wildlife officers are searching for three orphan grizzly bear cubs after a man fought and killed their mother near Grande Prairie Wednesday.
The man came between the mother and her cubs while looking for elk in preparation for the bow-hunting season. When the female grizzly attacked, he stabbed her three times with a hunting knife, then fled across a field, screaming for help, before a neighbour came to his rescue.
The man is recovering in a Grande Prairie hospital. He had bites, scratches and a broken limb.
The bear fled after the man stabbed it. Her body was found roughly 30 metres from where the attack took place.
"Wish him well for me," said Greg Flaaten, a 42-year-old Banff resident mauled by a black bear one year ago.
Flaaten was attacked while biking about seven kilometres outside the town of Banff. The bear dragged him off the bike and about 70 metres into the bush, where it ate much of Flaaten's shoulder, back and part of his arm.
He was with the bear an hour and 40 minutes before park wardens shot it and rescued him. He still faces monthly reconstructive surgery to graft muscle tissue from his leg to his arm. But if doctors don't see progress soon, he'll lose the arm.
"I had a knife, too, but I wasn't able to get to it. Sometimes you're just not able to defend yourself against an animal that powerful and well-equipped for taking prey down. ... I guess I looked like an easy target that day."
Flaaten won't talk about the attack itself. "I know everyone is interested, but recounting the details doesn't help me get past it."
The man involved in Wednesday night's attack also requested privacy. He asked hospital officials not to release any information to the media.
A volunteer firefighter who responded Wednesday night described him as being in his 30s, six-feet tall and of average build. He is not from the community of Grovedale, where the attack took place, but had been asking several farmers in the area if he could hunt on their land, neighbours said.
Johann Wall was the first to hear the man's cries.
"I was working outside on my truck when I heard him scream and yell for help," Wall said. He jumped in his van and drove down the road and up a hill. "I saw him come running across the field," Wall said. "When he laid down that's when he started to feel the pain."
Fish and wildlife officers found the bear's carcass Thursday morning and set traps for the cubs.
"What we're hoping is we can relocate them out of the area and release them back into the wild," said Alberta Sustainable Resource Development spokesman Darcy Whiteside.
The bear's carcass has been sent to Edmonton for a full autopsy. Officials have confirmed it was a grizzly.
The attack happened on private land near an oat field and a dense, swampy area, Whiteside said. The cubs were still missing Friday evening.
Maurice Nadeau, president of Alberta Fish & Game Association, said it's common practice for hunters to go out before the season to scout where animals are most likely to be.
It's easy to surprise a bear because the scout has to be quiet. "It's a risk we take," he said.
"Especially this time of year, when you go out, make noise," Whiteside added, pointing to the ministry's website for bear-smart tips.
Jasper park warden Steve Malcolm said he's never heard of anyone fighting off and killing a grizzly. An adult grizzly weighs between 350 pounds and 650 pounds and will be searching for food at this time of year, trying to bulk up for the winter, he said. It's much larger than a black bear and generally lives farther from human homes.
"If you get a grizzly bear that is protecting her cubs, she's going to do everything she can. That's a pretty typical situation."
