Grizzly bear captured south of Libby
Additional trapping underway for more bears
by Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks
October 28, 2021
LIBBY, MONTANA - Bear specialists with Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service captured a grizzly bear south of Libby on Thursday and are setting traps for any additional bears that may be seeking food sources near residential areas.
On Oct. 28, FWP and USFWS captured a bear that was seeking human-related attractants near Parmenter Creek Road. The adult male is being moved to a remote area in the southern Cabinet Mountains. Camera footage identified additional bears in the area that were getting into human-related attractants. Bear managers set a trap on Oct. 28 in an effort to capture any additional bears.
Bears are actively seeking available food sources in preparation for winter denning. The best way to avoid attracting a bear onto private property is remove or secure food attractants. If a bear does not receive a food reward, it is far less likely to show up in the first place or return. Bears that gain rewards from human food sources can become food conditioned, which means they lose their natural foraging ability and pose an increased risk to human safety. Food rewards can also lead wildlife to become habituated to people, another increased risk to human safety. Both food conditioning and habituation often lead to euthanizing an animal for safety reasons. The most attractants are garbage, pet and livestock food, and fruit trees, but also compost, gardens, outdoor food cookers, and beehives. In the spring, bird feeders are a common attractant as well.
Bear spray is a highly effective, non-lethal bear deterrent.
Serious injuries caused by bears are rare, but the potential for conflict always exists.
For more information about bears, visit https://fwp.mt.gov/conservation/species/bear
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