Last month during my
summer visit to Telluride Colorado, we were again visited by bears. Bears have
been roaming the streets and alleys of town for several years now in
search of grub. I spotted one crossing the street about 1/2 block from
my house this year and we later watched him mosey down the alley behind
my house and then amble laconically back up - no more than 20 feet away
from my daughter and I. It was a thrill even though I couldn't get my
daughter to get close enough for a flash photo of the beasty.
They are frequent companions to area hikers and most every evening they can be spotted looking for easy pickings around town - one even wandered into the lobby of an upscale hotel while we were there, rummaged through the potted plants, and then left peaceably. The food-cart guy that makes crepes on Main Street has taken to locking his wares inside at night after bears became regulars consuming his sugar, flour and chocolate syrup without displaying a valid credit card or leaving cash. Another neighbor has some great pictures of a bear sitting in the backseat of a convertible eating a bag of apples some doofus had left there. Residents have gone to a double-lock trash can system after bears learned they could flip the cans and jump on their sides to release the bounty inside. Judging from my neighbors trash can one morning, the double-lock system isn't much more effective.
They are funny, scary, powerful, gentle neighbors and remind us that we really do live in the mountains - their domain. But to date nobody in Telluride has been harmed. There has been a peaceful co-existence.
Now with the death of a 74 year old woman just over the mountain in Ouray, that may change. For the bears sake I hope not. By all indication this woman has been feeding the bears for years against the advice of friends and neighbors and defying law enforcements attempts to get her to stop. Finally one of her bears bit the proverbial hand that fed him - or more accurately, ate the hand that fed him, plus a whole lot more. It would be a terrible shame for everybody to start persecuting bears for doing what they do. Along with the herd of Elk at the end of town and the myriad skunks, porcupines, coyotes and other native species that roam the area, the bears have posed no threat to those that treat them with the respect they deserve.
The Dept. of Wildlife motto 'A Fed Bear is a Dead Bear' is both sad and accurate. Because of this woman at least 4 bears have had to be killed and there may be others. Hopefully this will be an isolated incident that will serve as a 'teaching moment' for the rest of us.
They are frequent companions to area hikers and most every evening they can be spotted looking for easy pickings around town - one even wandered into the lobby of an upscale hotel while we were there, rummaged through the potted plants, and then left peaceably. The food-cart guy that makes crepes on Main Street has taken to locking his wares inside at night after bears became regulars consuming his sugar, flour and chocolate syrup without displaying a valid credit card or leaving cash. Another neighbor has some great pictures of a bear sitting in the backseat of a convertible eating a bag of apples some doofus had left there. Residents have gone to a double-lock trash can system after bears learned they could flip the cans and jump on their sides to release the bounty inside. Judging from my neighbors trash can one morning, the double-lock system isn't much more effective.
They are funny, scary, powerful, gentle neighbors and remind us that we really do live in the mountains - their domain. But to date nobody in Telluride has been harmed. There has been a peaceful co-existence.
Now with the death of a 74 year old woman just over the mountain in Ouray, that may change. For the bears sake I hope not. By all indication this woman has been feeding the bears for years against the advice of friends and neighbors and defying law enforcements attempts to get her to stop. Finally one of her bears bit the proverbial hand that fed him - or more accurately, ate the hand that fed him, plus a whole lot more. It would be a terrible shame for everybody to start persecuting bears for doing what they do. Along with the herd of Elk at the end of town and the myriad skunks, porcupines, coyotes and other native species that roam the area, the bears have posed no threat to those that treat them with the respect they deserve.
The Dept. of Wildlife motto 'A Fed Bear is a Dead Bear' is both sad and accurate. Because of this woman at least 4 bears have had to be killed and there may be others. Hopefully this will be an isolated incident that will serve as a 'teaching moment' for the rest of us.
Lab
results showed yesterday afternoon that a Ouray woman who fed bears for
a decade was killed by those same bears. It’s proof that feeding
wildlife can be deadly.
The necropsy of a 394-pound bear who was shot and killed Saturday morning near Munson’s home showed that he had gotten to Munson. Bits of cloth were found in his stomach. It’s not certain that this was the bear that killed her, but he’s the most likely suspect, officials said.
Neighbors long worried that Munson’s habit of feeding bears would get someone in trouble. DOW officials had tried for years to get Munson to stop feeding them, but she ignored their visits, calls and letters, Baskfield said.
The necropsy of a 394-pound bear who was shot and killed Saturday morning near Munson’s home showed that he had gotten to Munson. Bits of cloth were found in his stomach. It’s not certain that this was the bear that killed her, but he’s the most likely suspect, officials said.
Neighbors long worried that Munson’s habit of feeding bears would get someone in trouble. DOW officials had tried for years to get Munson to stop feeding them, but she ignored their visits, calls and letters, Baskfield said.
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