Hunter killed by grizzly bear west of Calgary
A hunter was killed by a grizzly bear Thursday afternoon south of Cochrane, Alta., according to Alberta Fish and Wildlife.
“The bear involved in the attack was shot by a surviving hunting partner and is believed to be dead,” provincial spokeswoman Sheena Campbell said in a statement. “A second bear, age unknown, fled the scene after the encounter.”
STARS Air Ambulance told CBC News that a man in his 30s was airlifted from the Springbank area, west of Calgary.
The air ambulance service did not confirm the man’s condition, although Alberta Fish and Wildlife said he survived.
Bear safety expert says grizzly attacks on hunters are frequent
“We see it every hunting season,” said Kim Titchener, founder of Bear Safety & More.
“Every hunting season, here in Canada or the United States, there are several cases of people being killed while hunting.”
Earlier this month, an elk hunter fought off a grizzly bear that attacked him in B.C.’s East Kootenay region. He died a few weeks after the attack.
CBC’s Dan Burritt tells us about Joe Pendry, who used his experience as a boxer to fight for his life when a mother attacked and seriously injured him in B.C.’s East Kootenay region earlier this month.
“We need to change our behavior and do our best to make it as safe as possible when we go hunting, biking, trail running or camping with our friends and family,” Titchener said.
He said hunters move incredibly quietly in the woods, which may be a factor behind surprising bear encounters.
“It’s common to accidentally call a carnivore when you’re making noise like a prey species,” he said. “It’s going to draw them in.”
The bears are expected to hibernate in the coming weeks, but they are still active on the landscape.
“Grizzly bears are still trying to figure out what’s left in the vegetation there to eat,” Tichenor said. “They’re still trying to fatten up for the winter.”
A giant grizzly bear came face-to-face with hikers on Banff’s popular Johnston Canyon Trail on Tuesday. (Photo credit: Buck Gorowski)
The proximity of a massacre to Calgary is not unheard of, Tichenor said. he pointed Two fatal bear attacks In Mountain View County, northwest of the city.
“Historically, grizzly bears have been found in Alberta and in plains environments,” he said. “This is bear country, and in some cases bears are moving back into habitats where they once lived.”
Alberta Fish and Wildlife did not confirm any details about the second bear that fled the scene, although Tichenor said both bears were likely a mother-cub pair.
“Fish and Wildlife officials will collect DNA samples from the surviving bear to confirm that the bear that was shot in the encounter was the attacking bear,” Campbell said in the statement.
