GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK, Wyoming, Oct. 20, 2021 (Gephardt Daily) — A “highly food-conditioned” grizzly bear has been euthanized in Wyoming’s Grand Teton National Park.
“For public safety, Grand Teton National Park officials, in coordination with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, euthanized a highly food-conditioned, 4-year-old female grizzly bear on Saturday, Oct. 16,” said a news release from the National Park Service. “This action was taken after the bear received numerous food rewards from unsecured sources, causing it to exhibit increasingly bold behavior. This behavior caused the bear to pose a threat to human safety and therefore it was removed from the population.”
Over the course of two years, the grizzly received multiple food rewards and demonstrated escalating conflict behavior, the news release said. In October of 2020, the bear accessed “numerous unsecured attractants” at a private residence south of the park. During the fall of 2021, the grizzly received additional food rewards on private lands and caused property damage. The bear eventually became more emboldened in attempts to obtain human food, breaking into bear-resistant dumpsters in Grand Teton National Park.
“Once a bear receives a human food reward, it can become food-conditioned,” the news release said. “Food rewards can include human food, trash, livestock feed, compost, pet food, beehives, etc. Over time, food-conditioned bears may become bold or aggressive in their attempts to obtain human food, as was the case with this bear.”
Park officials made the decision to capture and remove the animal in accordan with Interagency Grizzly Bear guidelines and the park bear and wildlife management plan.
“You can make a difference in a bear’s life by doing your part to ensure bears never obtain human foods, whether you call the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem home or are just passing through,” the news release said. “Odors attract bears. By storing attractants so bears cannot gain access and securing all trash in a bear-resistant dumpster, you can make sure a bear does not receive human foods. Residents of local communities are encouraged to secure attractants around their homes. Store all garbage within bear-resistant containers. Secure livestock feed, compost, and beehives. Ensure bird feeders are 10 feet up and 4 feet out from any building. Avoid planting fruit trees. Help your neighbors create a bear-wise community to protect wildlife.”
For more information and helpful tips about how to do your part to protect bears, click here.
