Bear sought after killing family goats and a duck

Hungry Horse News

A black bear got gruff with some local goats last week, killing four of them at a home north of Columbia Falls. It also apparently helped itself to a duck.

The animals were killed at James and Wanda Barry's farm. Fish, Wildlife and Parks bear management specialist Erik Wenum said a black bear is the likely culprit.

No sign of the duck has been found. The total loss, including the duck, was $1,005, Wanda said. She said the goats were worth $250 apiece and the duck $5.

Wanda said they first figured a mountain lion was the predator. Last year, a mountain lion killed a deer on the Barry's property.

Wenum arrived and determined that, based on evidence such as the attack wounds, it was probably a bear.

Wenum also said Ted North, of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services, set up a leg trap and they caught a "little black bear" in it. But the bear escaped from the trap, leaving behind just its black hair.

There is now a larger culvert trap on the property. Wenum said that if they catch the bear, they will probably kill it.

The Barrys also had a pony missing after the goats were killed. They eventually found it hiding in the woods. Wanda said it got scared and ran through the hole in the fence created by the bear.

Wanda said they are keeping their other 10 goats locked up.

Wenum said Flathead Valley residents should be especially diligent about securing bear attractants for the next four to six weeks.

He said bears are emerging from their dens a bit earlier than normal because of the warm weather and lack of snow. But there isn't much for them to eat because the vegetation is still dormant.

He said it will be more than a month before vegetation greens up enough for bears. Since plants respond more to the length of the day and angle of the sun than temperatures, they usually green up at about the same time each year, Wenum said.

Some of the bears are emerging from their dens hungry because of the poor berry season last year, Wenum said, and they will look for human sources if available.

"Hopefully, once things green up, some of the activity will quiet down again," Wenum said.

Glacier National Park, however, is not reporting any unusual bear activity. Park carnivore specialist John Waller said they have not had any reports of bears or bear sign.

"It's pretty quiet on the bear front - thank goodness," he said.

Waller said they could start coming out soon, which would be earlier than normal, but not shocking.

Grizzlies usually emerge from their dens in mid-April, Waller said, but anytime after March 15 is not that unusual. Black bears generally emerge a little later.

Waller said early snow melt could flood the bears' dens and force them to "start popping out."

Last year, a failed berry crop forced bears to forage and maraud in the valleys. That led to 31 human-caused grizzly bear deaths in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem - the highest number since 1974.

There was also a lot of black bear activity reported in Flathead Valley and North Fork communities.

Despite the high activity, FWP Region 1 managers killed just seven bears, which is on the low side of the normal average of seven to 10. They also handled 87 bears, which is a little lower than normal, too.

Glacier National Park officials killed one black bear, near Many Glacier, and zero grizzly bears.

East of the park, on the Blackfeet Reservation, the results were much different. Reservation officials killed 30 black bears. In an average year they kill four to six, bear manager Dan Carney said at the time.

If the drought persists, Waller said it wouldn't have much affect on this year's berries. The wet summer last year should help the crop. Berries start to bud in the winter and the amount of precipitation from previous year is the significant factor, Wenum said.

But that means without more moisture this year, next summer's berries could be in bad shape.