June 29, 1998 Article about Flathead Scavenging black bears shot, killed written By MICHAEL JAMISON of the Missoulian.
On Friday, park rangers killed a young male black bear because the animal had become accustomed to human food, officials said. The bear was killed in the northeast part of park, in the Elizabeth Lake area.
According to rangers, the bear first nosed into trouble on June 29, when he ate a camper's food at the back-country campground. The backpacker, officials said, had left food unattended when he went to fetch water. By the time he returned, the bear had eaten about two days' worth of food.
Later that same day, rangers spent several hours attempting to drive the bear from the area. Despite hazing attempts, the bear returned to the campground on July 1, climbing a food pole to nab another camper's meal.
Rangers again responded, firing bean bags and rubber bullets at the bold bruin.
When the bear returned July 3, rangers shot and killed the sub adult male.
"The bear had persisted in trying to obtain unnatural food and approach an area frequented by visitors," said Chief Ranger Steve Frye. "Because its food-conditioned and habituated behavior was potentially dangerous to humans, trapping and relocating the bear was not an option."
A similar problem led to the death of a large male black bear in the Trego area, just west of Whitefish.
Erik Wenum, a game damage specialist with the state Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, shot the bear, which officials termed "hopelessly habituated to human foods." The bear, which had visited homes for about three weeks, had no fear of humans, he said.
At one point, the 260-pound bruin climbed onto the hood of a truck, ignoring warning shots fired around it. The bear also had prowled around nearby homes, pushing on the glass of several windows.
"If we'd known about this bear three weeks ago, maybe we would have been able to do something about it," Wenum said. "But by the time a bear gets to this point, all the rubber bullets, cracker shells and bear dogs in the world aren't going to work to drive it off." Relocating the bear, he said, only would have moved the problem to another area.