No charges in North Fork grizzly deaths

No charges will be filed in the death of four grizzly bears up the North Fork that got into a trailer that was used to store garbage on private property Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Region 1 spokesman Dillon Tabish said.

Tabish noted that state law makes it illegal to “purposely or knowingly attracting any cloven-hoofed ungulates, bears, mountain lions, or wild turkeys with supplemental feed attractants.”

But in this case, there wasn’t an intent to attract bears, the people were simply storing garbage — albeit in a negligent manner.

The law also requires a warning before being charged.

“After having received a previous warning, negligently failing to properly store supplemental feed attractants and allowing any cloven-hoofed ungulates, bears, mountain lions, or wild turkeys access to the supplemental feed attractants,” the law states.

Earlier this month FWP grizzly bear management specialist Tim Manley put down a sow grizzly named Monica and her three cubs after the bears got into a trailer with garbage and broke into other locations as well.

Monica was an iconic bear in the North Fork community and her death was viewed as a preventable tragedy by many North Forkers.

Tabish said if a county food storage order had been in effect, or the incident had been on state or federal lands, which have food storage orders, then charges likely could have been brought.

In British Columbia, Canada, they have been working on creating “Bear Smart” communities since the 1990s. Through education, outreach and grants, the Bear Smart Society helps communities create a comprehensive plan to secure things like garbage and other attractants and make a concerted effort to use non-lethal means to haze and control bears.

Currently, BC has nine recognized Bear Smart Communities including Kamloops, Squamish, Lions Bay, Whistler, Port Alberni, Naramata, New Denver, Coquitlam, and Port Hardy, according to the Society’s website.

The North Fork would be an ideal model in the U.S., Tabish, who is also a member of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee, noted.

To that end, the North Fork community is also looking at ways to address the issue.

“Two local non-profits, the North Fork Landowners Association and the North Fork Preservation Association, will be working together, along with agency partners, to help improve food and garbage storage in the area as well as to make financial aid resources from conservation organizations such as Defenders of Wildlife and Vital Ground more readily available to residents and business owners in the North Fork,” the two groups said last week. “The North Fork community deeply grieves the loss of Monica and her cubs and in the coming months will explore new avenues to further educate and assist residents and visitors in how to live and recreate in bear country in a manner safe for both bears and humans.”

Despite the loss of Monica and her cubs, the number of grizzlies killed by human means this year has been lower than some previous years.

Across the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem, which spans from Canada to Ovando, a total of 36 bears have been killed. Fifteen were agency removals for various reasons and 10 were hit by vehicles. Four were poached. Two were accidentally poisoned, one was killed in self-defense and one died during capture. Three the cause of death was unknown,

In addition to the 36, three died of natural causes.

With hunting season approaching however, that number could go up as hunters in at least a few years in the past have had encounters with grizzlies that haven’t gone well for the bears and in some cases, the hunters, too.