Subject: Re: black bear predation, shooting griz
Date: Feb 23 14:10:02 1998
From: Don Baccus - dhogaza at pacifier.com


At 01:56 PM 2/23/98 -0800, James R Lyles III, Technical Editor, Tacoma, WA
wrote:
>
> I'm just catching up on my tweeters mail, so I'm a
> little late in joining the bear conversation.
>
> But it's worth mentioning (I hope) that a couple of
> up-to-day studies on bear attacks have appeared on TV
> recently. The Discovery channel has just shown a episode
> on black bear predation, including some video by a fisherman
> who was being stalked by a black bear. (The man got away.)
>
> ('Scuse me for going blank on the name of the bear authority
> whose work the show was based on.)
>
> Anyway, the study pinned the blame for attempts at preying
> on people exclusively on male black bears.
>
> Moreover, the study found that female black bears seldom
> attacked even in the defense of their cubs. And when they
> did attack to defend cubs, they quit the attacks as soon as
> they didn't sense any danger--that is, when the threatening
> people lay still.
>
> Does anyone else see this TV presentation?

I didn't, but it's consistent with Herrero's data published in 1985.

There's a parallel discussion of this subject over in Usenet, oddly enough.
Someone there said that Herrero's been arm-twisted into updating his book,
including information on the BC bear attacks some here have alluded to. This
same person claims that Herrero was originally very skeptical of the efficacy
of pepper spray but has investigated encounters and has come to the point of
view that it works well.

That's all hearsay, though - wait for the new edition of the book, if it
appears! :)




- Don Baccus, Portland OR <dhogaza at pacifier.com>
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