You somehow got between a surly old she-bear and her cubs. What do you do?
 
Well, for starters, know that it could be worse. You could be staring down a hungry young boar.
 
That’s one conclusion of a century’s worth of fatal bear attacks, reported today in Toronto’s Globe and Mail. Investigators with the University of Calgary, Brigham Young University and the Massachusetts Fish and Game studied 59 fatal black bear incidents across North America from 1900 to 2009 and arrived at these surprising findings:
 
·     The most common aggressor is a lone male bear, not a sow with cubs. Only 8 percent of attacks were attributed to mama bears.

·     Food availability seems to be a determining factor in black bear attacks. In years of poor berry crops, incidents of aggressive bears nearly double.

·     Attractive nuisances can result in fatal bear attacks. The study revealed that improperly stored food or garbage was a likely attractant in over a third of the fatalities.

·     Pepper spray was not deployed in any of the 63 fatalities. Whether or not it might have deterred the attack wasn’t investigated, but it’s a good guess that man of the victims had no warning of the attack.

·     In nearly 90 percent of the fatal attacks, the victim was either alone or with only one other person.

·     Nearly 60 percent of the fatalities occurred in Canada. This proves a point that I’ve suspected for years: Canadians have better taste than Yankees. Eh?

Photo: Styro

Comments (6)

from Bob Hansen 6/9/2011 at 01:13pm

Unless you're properly equipped for bear hunting, that's another reason for giving them a wide berth. Of course, you'd have to see them first...!! Potent bear sprays are on the market today, and some of them meet certain State/Gov't standards...amount of "pepper" it contains, distance it can be sprayed and for how long; and orange colored spray seems to be what most "authorities" are recommending.

Pathfinder Bob Hansen

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from GRINCH64 5/14/2011 at 11:46am

Even some human male teenagers are surly vandals.
I once came upon a trail of destruction left by a bear that had been pushing over small trees.
A small group of elk came to town and stayed a few days. The young bull sat on parked cars, squashing them, and knocked down many fences he could have cleared easily, as the others did.
Might be that infamous male malady known as lackanookie.

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from GRINCH64 5/14/2011 at 11:44am

Even some human male teenagers are surly vandals.
I once came upon a trail of destruction left by a bear that had been pushing over small trees.
A small group of elkcme to town and stayed a few days. The young bull sat on parked cars, squashing them, and knocked down many fences he could have cleared easily, as the others did.
Might be that infamous male malady known as lackanookie.

0 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from KodaBear 5/13/2011 at 11:47am

Yo dare. Putm in beg and shakem, dont cha know.

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from Dcast 5/13/2011 at 10:08am

I here they taste like bacon! It has yet to be proven though!

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from Montanagyrene 5/12/2011 at 07:52pm

Maybe not so much HAVE better taste, as they must just taste better!!

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from Bob Hansen 6/9/2011 at 01:13pm

Unless you're properly equipped for bear hunting, that's another reason for giving them a wide berth. Of course, you'd have to see them first...!! Potent bear sprays are on the market today, and some of them meet certain State/Gov't standards...amount of "pepper" it contains, distance it can be sprayed and for how long; and orange colored spray seems to be what most "authorities" are recommending.

Pathfinder Bob Hansen

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from Montanagyrene 5/12/2011 at 07:52pm

Maybe not so much HAVE better taste, as they must just taste better!!

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from Dcast 5/13/2011 at 10:08am

I here they taste like bacon! It has yet to be proven though!

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from KodaBear 5/13/2011 at 11:47am

Yo dare. Putm in beg and shakem, dont cha know.

0 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from GRINCH64 5/14/2011 at 11:44am

Even some human male teenagers are surly vandals.
I once came upon a trail of destruction left by a bear that had been pushing over small trees.
A small group of elkcme to town and stayed a few days. The young bull sat on parked cars, squashing them, and knocked down many fences he could have cleared easily, as the others did.
Might be that infamous male malady known as lackanookie.

0 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from GRINCH64 5/14/2011 at 11:46am

Even some human male teenagers are surly vandals.
I once came upon a trail of destruction left by a bear that had been pushing over small trees.
A small group of elk came to town and stayed a few days. The young bull sat on parked cars, squashing them, and knocked down many fences he could have cleared easily, as the others did.
Might be that infamous male malady known as lackanookie.

0 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

Write a Comment Your comment (200 characters or less):

 

All submitted answers are subject to the rules set forth in our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.