Tag: Bear

Momma bear in Yellowstone has ‘paws full’ with misbehaving cub

Video shows a momma bear in Yellowstone National Park at wits end with her misbehaving cub as it plays a game of “Catch me if you can.”

A momma bear in Yellowstone National Park appears to be at wits end with her misbehaving cub as it plays a game of “Catch me if you can.”

Momma bear is definitely fed up with the cub’s antics, as she gets a little rough, including whipping the young one around at the 5:00 mark in the video produced by Ron Sterbenz of Yellowstone Video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJuSNr8Jh64

“I had never seen that rough behavior before on a cub,” Sterbenz told USA Today/For The Win Outdoors. “Mom’s patience was clearly wearing thin that morning. I have heard that black bears don’t always make great mothers, but I am not really sure what folks mean by that. As rough as she was on it, I wasn’t surprised that she only had one left.”

Sterbenz shot the footage in May in the northern tier of Yellowstone on the southeast hillside of Elk Creek. He condensed about 25 minutes of video down to the 6½ minutes he posted.

“When I later assembled the video sequences there were times that cub played and climbed a tree after this rough handling so it didn’t seem like it was running away,” Sterbenz told For The Win Outdoors. “In fact, the cub later followed mom over a couple logs and I think bedded down to nurse. I waited another half hour, but neither reappeared.

“Like children of every species, they will test the patience of their parents every once in awhile.”

Also on FTW Outdoors: Yellowstone tourist is no ‘bison whisperer,’ just reckless

There was plenty of sympathy for the momma bear from viewers of Yellowstone Video. Among the comments:

“This mother has her paws full. The cub is too funny, but Mama isn’t laughing.”

“Poor mama bear, she must be thinking ‘Lord give me patience.’”

“That mother is going to have to spank him. This just made my day!!”

“Poor mom. Kids never listen to moms even with animals, but that’s what moms do, love and care.”

“Good thing she only has the one. That cub has a very independent streak.”

“Well, we all know what this is…some days Mom has just had enough.”

“This little one is a hand full lol….he pushed every button she had….then climbed a tree…..little stinker.”

“That’s one defiant and very independent cub! Such a little rascal! It knew it had the advantage as it didn’t weigh enough to break through the snow, yet momma bear did! Delightful video.”

Photo courtesy of Ron Sterbenz.

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Yellowstone tourist charged by grizzly bear subject of probe

Yellowstone National Park is seeking the public’s help identifying a woman who approached dangerously close to a grizzly bear earlier this month, nearly prompting an attack.

Yellowstone National Park is seeking the public’s help identifying a tourist who approached dangerously close to a grizzly bear earlier this month, nearly prompting an attack.

The woman, who was not injured, can be seen in the accompanying footage trying to take photos of a momma bear and two cubs from a distance of less than 30 yards.

The bear responded by bluff-charging, a behavior intended to ward off potential threats. The frightened woman turned and quickly walked away, extremely fortunate that she did not inspire an actual attack.

The video footage was captured by Darcie Addington, a tourist who watched from inside a vehicle. The image atop this post was provided by the park.

ALSO ON FTW OUTDOORS: Orca’s dramatic leap leaves boaters in awe; video

Park rules state that tourists must stay at least 100 yards from bears and wolves whenever possible, especially while outside vehicles. Tourists who act recklessly around wildlife can be cited.

U.S. Park Rangers also are involved in the investigation.

The incident occurred May 10 at about 4:45 p.m. at Roaring Mountain. In a news release posted Tuesday on Facebook, the park stated:

“The unidentified woman is described as white, mid 30’s, brown hair, and wearing black clothing. If you were around Roaring Mountain on May 10, 2021 at 4:45PM, or you have information that could help, please contact NPS Investigative Services Branch at:

“Call or Text: 888-653-0009; Online: www.nps.gov/ISB; Email: nps_isb@nps.gov.”

Besides issuing distance guidelines pertaining to wildlife, Yellowstone constantly reminds tourists that they’re responsible for their own safety.

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Massive bear has perfect reaction to close people encounter

Footage showing a large black bear pausing behind a bush to avoid detection by people exiting a house has generated varied responses on social media.

Footage showing a large black bear pausing behind a bush to avoid detection by people exiting a house has generated varied responses on social media.

The video, sent to WFSB Channel 3 by a resident of Avon, Conn., shows the bear avoiding a potential conflict by waiting until both people rounded a corner before continuing its journey.

“What a sweet bear to wait for them to leave,” reads one of dozens of comments beneath the WFSB Tweet.

But it was a retweet by primate researcher Alicia Rich that generated the most engagement, with an introduction implying that humans could learn plenty from the bear’s behavior.

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“This is how most human-wildlife interactions go,” Rich tweeted. “They see us, we don’t see them, they avoid us, we go about our business. Keep that mind every time some crazy escalation incident goes viral.”

Rich’s tweet garnered thousands of likes and retweets, and inspired dozens of comments. The most popular was a basic observation: “The way that bear carefully backed away when it saw the humans should be an example to us all of what to do when encountering wildlife.”

Close behind, however, was this: “Hence the advisory to prioritize de-escalating the encounter. Everyone (even bears) just wants to go back home safe.”

More social commentary: “The bear is better at social distancing than lots of people I see out there.”

One person wondered what would have happened had the people exiting the house turned and saw the bear. Thankfully, because of the bear’s natural instincts, we’ll never know.

–Image courtesy of WFSB Channel 3

Watch: Black bear chases mountain biker in downhill sprint

Black bears can reach a top speed of 35 mph and if that’s hard to believe check out the accompanying footage showing a bear chasing a mountain biker on a trail in Whitefish, Montana.

Black bears can reach top speeds of 35 mph and if that’s hard to believe check out the accompanying footage showing a bear sprinting after a mountain biker in Whitefish, Montana.

The widely shared footage, captured from a ski lift, shows the bear in a determined pursuit to catch or simply chase the mountain biker from its territory.

The bear even attempts to cut the biker off by charging through brush on the switchback trail. But the mountain biker outlasted the bear and rode to safety.

ALSO ON FTW OUTDOORS: Orcas greet swimmer face to face; ‘Best day of my life’; video

“He was just fine,” Josh Smith, owner of the Montana Knife Co., told For The Win Outdoors.

Smith said the incident occurred a couple of years ago but his company’s footage was shared for the first time Monday.

“We posted it because we’re launching a new big veterans fundraiser [Wednesday] and wanted some eyes on our Facebook page.”
The introduction contains a pointed message: “A quick reminder that Montana is not Disneyland.”

Runner pursued by hungry bear was ready for attack

A runner in Grand Teton National Park noticed a “hungry little cinnamon black bear who was fresh out of the den” taking an interest in him.

Evan Matthews was out for a casual run in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming when he noticed a “hungry little cinnamon black bear who was fresh out of the den” taking an interest in him.

Smartly, Matthews didn’t immediately run away but held his ground. He then started slowly backing away and kept calmly talking to the bear, which subsequently pursued him for about a half mile.

“Hey! Stay back,” he yelled at the bear initially. “Hey! No!…No, you back up! You stay there!”

But it didn’t. Instead, the bear exited the snow-covered forest and hit the road, right behind Matthews, who had his bear spray in hand. He was ready for an attack.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMUaeTLhqXc

“Hey, no! I don’t care if you’re hungry, I’m not your food,” Matthews told the bear in the video. “Sure, we could take a walk if you want, you don’t get any closer, though.”

The bear lost interest for a second, but turned and continued to follow Matthews.

“Luckily he’s not coming too fast,” he said. “I’m only a quarter mile from the car. Hopefully I don’t have to spray him.”

Fortunately, he didn’t have to use the bear spray. The bear finally turned off the road and scampered off into the forest.

Also on FTW Outdoors: Teeth-baring brown bear chases ski instructor in 3 minutes of ‘horror’

“That’s the first time I’ve been kind of run up on by a bear,” he said. “It’s exciting. Seen plenty of them out in the wild but never had them come at me like that.”

Matthews explained his actions in the video’s description:

“I did NOT run away. If I had, the bear could have thought of me as prey and chased me down. Being that I am not prey, I stood my ground when it charged, showing it that I’m not a prey animal, then backed away slowly.

“I did NOT play dead. That may save your life if a mother bear with cubs is attacking, as she may perceive the threat to be over. But with a solo bear who is interested in you like this, it is not trying to eliminate a threat—it is trying to find an easy target. Don’t be one.

“I kept talking to it to show that I was a human and not to be mistaken for another animal. Not all bear encounters are the same. In most cases, I’ve been able to just go around the animal. But this one was interested in me, so I had to change its mind!”

And eventually he did, thankfully.

Photos courtesy of Evan Matthews and ViralHog.

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Also on FTW Outdoors: Cute pups from Yellowstone wolf pack disrupt traffic control

Watch: Bear falls through ice, struggles to climb out

Witnesses felt helpless when a bear walking toward them on thin ice fell through and struggled to climb out of the frigid water. It was captured on video.

Family and friends were enjoying a birthday gathering at a rental house in South Lake Tahoe when they noticed a bear coming at them, walking gingerly over a lagoon covered in thin ice that could be heard cracking.

Suddenly, the bear fell through the ice and began struggling to escape.

The incident occurred in December at the south side of the Tahoe Keys Lagoon and was recorded by Alyssa Garcia. It was posted publicly for the first time Monday via ViralHog.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Wvc1wx16_E

“Oh no,” Garcia exclaims in the video. “Oh no. Babe, call animal control.”

It took nearly two minutes for the bear to climb out of the frigid water and right itself on the ice. It then wandered back to where it came from, shaking the water out of its fur as it went.

Garcia explained further, telling USA Today/For The Win Outdoors:

“My boyfriend and my son were outside playing when they saw the bear. It’s still kinda far from where we are. Then after a few minutes, we notice that he is coming towards us. It’s a little scary at first because this was our first time to see a bear up close in the wilderness…

Also on FTW Outdoors: Skier chased by bear down slope escapes with a shrewd move

“I was so nervous for the bear because we thought he won’t be able to make it! So, I started asking everyone if they can call the ‘Animal Control.’ To be honest, I really don’t know who to call at that time. But thank goodness he was able to pull himself up. The bear just turned around and started walking towards the forest.”

And no worse for wear, apparently.

Bear bites woman’s bottom during bizarre outhouse encounter

Shannon Stevens of Haines, Alaska, might be the only person to have been bitten in the rear by a bear while attempting to use a campsite outhouse.

Shannon Stevens of Haines, Alaska, might be the only person to have been bitten in the rear by a bear while attempting to use a campsite outhouse.

“She might be the only person this has ever happened to,” Carl Koch, a spokesman for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, told KHNS News. “I wouldn’t be surprised over the years if other folks have had bizarre things — but during February to sit down in an outhouse and have something like that happen is very unusual.”

Stevens was yurt camping at Chilkat Lake on Saturday with her brother and his girlfriend when it became time to answer nature’s call.

Photo courtesy of Erik Stevens, via KHNS News

“Normally, when we are out there in the summer or the fall I’m used to shouting ‘Hey, bear!’ the whole way,” she recalled. “It was the dead of winter, so I didn’t think to do that this time. I got in there and sat down on the toilet seat, and something just immediately bit me in the butt. I jumped up and screamed.”

Erik Stevens rushed to the aid of his sister and, after hearing her explanation, went into the outhouse with a headlamp. He looked into the toilet to see “a gigantic bear face looking right back up to me.”

He slammed the lid and they hurried back to the yurt, where Shannon, who was bleeding but not seriously injured, was treated for a deep puncture wound.

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She later wondered whether her injury might have been caused by the bear’s sharp claws.

Erik Stevens explained to KHNS News that farther down the hill there’s a back entrance to the outhouse hole, which had been covered with rocks. “He probably just pushed the rocks over and got down into the hole,” Erik said.

The story does not mention whether the bear might have been hibernating in the hole at the remote lake. However, Koch’s investigation turned up black bear tracks and he said there had been other reports of bear activity in the area.

Chilkat Lake is 17 miles from Haines in Southeast Alaska. Erik Stevens said his group accessed the yurt via snowmobile and that the bear might have been attracted by the smell of sausages cooking over an outdoor fire pit.

Watch: Bear joins startled hunters in tree stand

Video footage has surfaced showing a large bear cub joining two startled bow hunters in their tree stand.

Video footage has surfaced showing a large bear cub joining two startled bow hunters in their tree stand.

The footage, posted below, also shows the hunters trying to remain calm out of fear of startling the bear, which at times was only inches away.

Wes Marchak told For The Win Outdoors that he and his brother were hunting bears from the stand last May in the Canadian province of Manitoba when another cub chased its sibling up the tree.

The footage, uploaded to YouTube by Viral Hog on Monday, shows Marchak giggling as the cub was just opposite his brother farther up the tree. “It was my brother’s first time hunting,” Marchak said, declining to provide his brother’s name.

ALSO ON FTW OUTDOORS: That was no snag; angler lands record catfish

The young bear, once it realized it was not alone, quickly returned to the forest floor.

Marchak explained that momma bear had long since left the cubs, which were about 4 years old, to fend for themselves. The hunters did not harm the cubs.

Marchak, however, said he had been hunting “a certain bear with great size and lots of meat to fill my freezer,” and harvested that bruin a few days later.

–Image courtesy of Wes Marchak

Tense moments for family as bear removes window screen

A black bear provided scary moments for a family in Mammoth Lakes, Calif., recently when it removed a window screen and considered breaking in for several seconds despite the family’s loud pleas.

A black bear provided scary moments for a family in Mammoth Lakes, Calif., recently when it removed a window screen and considered breaking in despite the family’s pleas.

“We got a visit from one of our neighbors, apparently he is not fond of our front door and doesn’t know what ‘shoo’ means,” Christian Pondella joked on Instagram.

As viewers can see, the light-colored black bear deftly removes the screen and sniffs the air for several seconds as Pondella and his wife and son try shooing the bruin. At one point the bear seems on the verge of climbing through the window.

Pondella, an adventure photographer, told For The Win Outdoors that the bear “eventually left” during the encounter last week, and it has not returned. “No damage except the screen,” Pondella said.

RELATED: Yellowstone tries humor to teach safe distancing behavior

Black bears are abundant in the forest around Mammoth Lakes, and commonly sighted by residents.

–Image courtesy of Christian Pondella

Mountain bikers’ close bear encounter caught on video

The accompanying footage, captured at Sun Peaks Bike Park shows a close encounter between expert mountain bikers and a bear on the trail.

When a wilderness bike park opens for a new season, riders face a stronger possibility of encountering critters – including bears! – that aren’t yet used to their presence.

The accompanying footage, captured at Sun Peaks Bike Park in British Columbia, Canada, shows a close encounter involving expert mountain bikers and a young bear that was not expecting the raucous intrusion.

“Oh, agh! Bear, dude!,” Jesse Melamed, the videographer and the rider closest to the bear, exclaims at the outset of the footage, which he uploaded to YouTube on Tuesday.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hq1rFcMrSqE]

The frightened bear charges down the trail briefly before fleeing into the safety of the lush grass.

“I almost ran over a bear!” reads some of the text in Melamed’s video.

RELATED: Yellowstone hiker injured by bear near Old Faithful

Melamed was with Remi Gauvin, Miranda Miller and Lee Jackson, and their 19-minute exploits are entertaining even without the bear encounter.

But a longer version of the encounter can be viewed at 5:40. Viewers can see the bear rushing onto the trail immediately behind one rider, facing Melamed, who reacts with his “Ooh, ah!” remark as the bear quickly turns and runs from the approaching rider.

“Sorry, buddy!” Melamed says afer safely passing the critter.

The riders stop to review what had just happened. “Dude, I almost hit the thing, man,” Melamed says. “I thought it was like a little marmot or something.”

–Image courtesy of Jesse Melamed