Tag: Bear

Watch: Bear jumps into tree to avoid speedy mountain bikers

A black bear appeared ready to cross a mountain bike trail at Whistler when it was forced to take evasive measures to avoid a collision.

A black bear appeared ready to cross a mountain bike trail when it quickly jumped up a tree to take cover as it heard five mountain bikers racing downhill heading its way.

Leading the “train” at Whistler Mountain Bike Park in British Columbia was Steve Peat, a professional downhill mountain biker known as a legend in Britain.

Alex Griggs happened to capture video of the encounter, and Peat posted it on his Instagram account, writing, “Ace last day in the park!! Even got to see a black bear jumping into a tree while I was leading the train!!”

https://www.instagram.com/p/DBIRrMRx5ie/

The bear clung to the tree while waiting for the riders to pass. Once the coast was clear, it climbed down and continued on its way.

It is not unusual to encounter black bears at this venue, which boasts of being the No. 1 mountain bike park in the world.

Photo credit: Resort Municipality of Whistler

According to Blackcomb Peaks, an estimated 50 black bears make their home in the forests and mountains surrounding Whistler Village, including a family of bears that make its home at the mountain bike park.

Visitors are given the usual tips on how to stay safe. One is to talk or sing to avoid surprising a bear. In this case, the mountain bikers made plenty of noise to announce their presence.

Feature photo courtesy of Alex Griggs via Steve Peat. 

Can you spot the bear? Yellowstone guide issues challenge

If you’re able to spot the black bear in the Yellowstone National Park image you’re either lucky or have a keen eye.

A Montana-based guide who leads hiking expeditions in Yellowstone National Park on Friday tweeted a landscape image and asked followers if they could spot the black bear.

“I’ve been told my more recent ‘Find the Animal Friday’ posts have been way too easy,” Douglas Scott declared. “This one is a little more challenging.”

Can you spot the black bear? Photo: Douglas Scott

Scott, who runs The Outdoor Society, granted ForTheWin Outdoors permission to use the image and supplied a second image that we’ve posted below to serve as a hint for those who might struggle initially to spot the bear (as I did.)

Can you spot the bear in the images posted above? (Answer below.)

Scott told FTW Outdoors that he captured the image June 21 from above the Lamar River “on a perfectly clear day” in the park’s northern range.

“It was definitely a fun spot as my client was amazed I saw it so easily from so far away,” Scott recalled.

Scott’s X followers chimed in with guesses but, as of Sunday night, only one had pinpointed the bear’s location.

When I guessed, Scott informed me that I had found “the shadow of a tree.”

Another guess was met with the reply: “Unfortunately, you are incorrect. You most definitely found a non-animal shadow though!”

Black bear is pictured in the clearing barely left of center. Photo: Douglas Scott

The image posted immediately above shows the bear when Scott was closer (or zoomed-in). Readers, if they choose, can use landmarks in the image to match the location of the bear in Scott’s original image.

To view the answer, click on Scott’s tweet and scroll to Matt Inman’s comment. Or simply view the image posted below.

Scott specializes in leading day trips to remote areas “beyond the boardwalks” of Yellowstone National Park. The hikes typically last between four and seven hours.

Arrow points to black bear. Photo: Douglas Scott

Moose chased by bear stops to look back; ‘You still coming?’

A wildlife biologist saw a moose and decided to take a short video. “It ended up being a better video than I expected,” Wes Larson said.

Wes Larson, a wildlife biologist in Montana, was checking out an empty campground that had been the site of a fatal bear attack when he saw a moose. So, he decided to begin filming.

“It ended up being a better video than I expected,” Larson wrote on X, where he posted the video.

That’s because the moose began running toward him, being chased by a bear.

The moose stopped in front of Larson’s vehicle to turn around and check whether the bear was still giving chase. If it could talk, the moose might have said, “You still coming?”

The moose found out a moment later that the bear, indeed, was still coming. Larson filmed the chase as it continued down the gravel road.

In the end, the bear was unsuccessful, failing to catch the moose.

Larson stated on his Instagram post that that bear eventually ended up grazing on clover in a nearby field.

Larson, who hosts a podcast about animal attacks, was visiting Soda Butte Campground where in 2010 a man was pulled out of his tent, killed and eaten by a grizzly bear. Larson covered the story in his podcast last July, prompting the visit last Tuesday.

Bear makes broken-field run during California high school football practice

Black bear stops by practice at Truckee High School in California.

Football practice can be unbearable at any time of year. For Truckee High School in California, the team saw that rise to a different level.

The team was in a June workout when an uninvited guest decided to strut his stuff across the field.

Check out the black bear’s running style, who heads back to the forest after giving players an unexpected break.

The teams posted the video to Instagram, noting that “The possibilities at a football practice in Truckee are vast snow, lightning storms, hail, coyotes taking out voles or maybe the birds of prey swooping down on the varmints or a Black Bear making his way through old wetlands of Meadow Lake.”

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Montana hunter kills grizzly bear near hibernation site

A Montana hunter has killed a grizzly bear in self-defense near where the animal had been digging a hibernation den.

A Montana hunter shot and killed a grizzly bear in apparent self-defense Saturday as the bruin charged the hunter.

According to Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, the adult female grizzly bear, which had no history of conflict with humans, “appeared to be digging a den where the encounter took place.”

Grizzly bears are foraging in advance of hibernation and the hunter apparently surprised the animal. The incident occurred near Ennis in the Gravelly Range in Madison County.

Gravelly Range in Montana

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks stated in a news release: “This time of year is when bears are active for longer periods as they prepare for hibernation.

“This period overlaps with hunting season and other fall recreation activities. Hunters should be aware that bears will remain active throughout the general [hunting] season.”

Grizzly bears are federally protected under the Endangered Species Act and can only be killed legally in cases of self-defense.

The incident is under investigation by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.

–Generic grizzly bear image courtesy of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

Bear with head stuck in plastic drum quickly rescued in Spain

A brown bear that was found wandering through a Spanish town with its head stuck in a plastic drum has been rescued.

A brown bear that was found wandering through a Spanish town with its head stuck in a plastic drum has been rescued.

The bear was first spotted on the morning of Sept. 13 by residents of Anllares del Sil in León. Its entire head was inside the empty corn dispenser, rendering the bruin unable to see or feed.

A rescue effort coordinated by government biologists involved sedating the bear so the life-threatening device could be removed. The successful operation lasted barely more than an hour.

According to a news release issued by the Junta de Castilla y León, the bear was determined to be healthy. It’s now fitted with a GPS collar so biologists can track its movements.

The accompanying images are courtesy of the Teddy Bear Foundation.

Watch: Man and pet Yorkie face down intruding black bear

Video footage captured recently in Pace, Fla., shows a man and his pet Yorkie attempting to scare off a black bear that had climbed onto a fence and threatened to enter the yard.

Video footage captured recently in Pace, Fla., shows a man and his Yorkie attempting to scare off a black bear that had climbed onto a fence and threatened to enter the yard.

The thickset man is shown calling Max, the Yorkie, away from the fence. But Max remains at the base of the fence and continues to bark.

At one point the bear swipes its paw toward Max, causing him and man to temporarily back away.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by ViralHog (@viralhog)

But the man continues to call his dog and clap loudly – a technique sometimes used by specialists to persuade bears to leave populated areas – and ultimately the bear climbs down the tree opposite the fence and disappears.

Was the man brave or foolish to remain so close to the bear, perhaps emboldening Max to do the same? Or did he handle the situation admirably?

Reads one of the more popular comments below the Viralhog Instagram post:

“That guy looks like he could take the bear on.”

Watch: Golfer chases after bear that stole his golf bag from cart

A black bear was left holding the (golf) bag when it approached a golf cart and pulled off a golfer’s bag, dragging it into the bushes despite the golfer’s attempt to thwart the theft.

A black bear was left holding the (golf) bag after it approached a golf cart and pulled off a golfer’s bag, dragging it into the bushes despite the golfer’s attempt to thwart the theft.

The incident occurred at Westwood Plateau Golf and Country Club in Coquitlam, British Columbia.

The victim was golfer Jerome Gignac, who tried screaming at the bear but to no avail.

“I can’t believe it,” he can be heard saying in the video.

“It came out of the woods, came to our carts, searched through our bags,” Gignac told Global News. “There was no food in any of the golf bags, but for some reason, it picked my bag to pull off the cart.”

The bag was brand new. Fortunately, most of his clubs fell out of the bag as the bear raced off. It looked like his putter, the last remaining club as the bear ran down a bushy ravine, also fell out of the bag.

Also on FTW Outdoors: Bear casually walks up to fallen traffic cone and puts it upright (video)

“It’s not unusual to see bears up here,” Gignac told Global News. “I had one walk across a green one time when I was putting and completely ignore us. My friend Peter and I were playing and the bear just walked right in front of us, across the green.

“But I’ve never seen a bear do something like that.”

Bear casually walks up to a fallen traffic cone and puts it upright

A bear showed its traffic safety acumen when it was videotaped walking up to and fixing a fallen traffic cone.

A bear in California showed its traffic safety acumen when it was videotaped casually walking up to a fallen traffic cone alongside a road and fixing it so it sat upright, as it is supposed to be.

Several media outlets picked up and posted the video credited to the California Department of Transportation, aka CalTrans, though it’s uncertain where or when this occurred. FOX26 posted the video on YouTube on Friday.

Amazingly, after straightening the traffic cone, the bear continued on its way as if its actions were an everyday occurrence.

Also on FTW Outdoors: Man calmly videos cougar walking past him; ‘I had bear spray ready’

Woman killed in apparent grizzly bear attack near Yellowstone

A woman was found deceased Saturday on a trail near the Montana town of West Yellowstone, the apparent victim of a grizzly bear attack.

A woman was found deceased Saturday on a trail near the Montana town of West Yellowstone, the apparent victim of a grizzly bear attack.

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks announced Sunday that the body was discovered on the Buttermilk Trail, and that grizzly bear tracks were found nearby.

The Custer Gallatin National Forest has temporarily closed the area – about eight miles west of West Yellowstone – to recreational activities.

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks said more details would be released when they become available, and that the case was under investigation.

The agency cautioned anyone entering bear country to avoid hiking alone and to keep bear spray close at hand.

West Yellowstone is just outside the West Entrance of Yellowstone National Park.

–Generic grizzly bear image courtesy of the National Park Service