WEST YELLOWSTONE, Montana – Authorities are currently conducting a search for a grizzly bear that brutally attacked and fatally killed a woman on a trail located to the west of Yellowstone National Park, along the Montana-Idaho border.
The attack occurred on Saturday morning, a mere few hundred yards away from a trailhead and private campground. There were no indications that the bear, accompanied by at least one cub, attempted to consume the victim. The woman appears to have been jogging at the time of the fatal mauling, as stated by Morgan Jacobsen from Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.
Officials have been unable to determine if the victim was specifically targeted or if it was an unfortunate chance encounter while she traveled alone in a forested area that is known to be frequented by both grizzly and black bears.
A hiker discovered the victim’s body along the trail at approximately 8 a.m. on Saturday. As of now, the victim’s identity has not been released. She was found wearing running shoes and did not possess bear spray, a recommended deterrent for individuals traveling through bear-populated areas.
“It is likely that this person was out for a morning jog along the trail when the incident took place,” stated Jacobsen.
Tracks belonging to a grizzly bear and at least one cub were discovered at the scene of the attack, which transpired near the Buttermilk Trailhead, situated 8 miles west of bustling West Yellowstone, a popular summer tourist destination and the gateway to the national park.
The Buttermilk Trail, in addition to being a well-known hiking route, is also utilized by individuals riding ATVs and other off-road vehicles.
Authorities have issued an emergency closure for certain sections of the Custer Gallatin National Forest, excluding Yellowstone National Park.
A trail camera managed to capture an image of a grizzly bear accompanied by two cubs in the area on Saturday, but no further sightings have been reported since then, according to Jacobsen. Bear traps set on Saturday and Sunday nights did not yield any results, and attempts to locate the bears from an aircraft were unsuccessful.
Officials have yet to decide if traps will be set again on Monday night and are still contemplating whether to kill or relocate the adult bear if it is captured, explained Jacobsen.
Trapping becomes less effective with the passage of time, as there is an increased likelihood of trapping a bear that was not involved in the attack, Jacobsen added.
In recent decades, grizzly bear populations in the northern U.S. Rocky Mountains have experienced significant growth. Since 2010, grizzlies in and around Yellowstone have been responsible for at least nine fatalities. However, such attacks remain relatively infrequent in a region that attracts millions of tourists each summer.
Two years ago, a backcountry guide was killed near West Yellowstone after being mauled by a large grizzly bear that wildlife officials believed was defending a nearby moose carcass. Furthermore, a hiker was killed last year in a suspected grizzly encounter in a remote area of the Absaroka Mountains, south of Livingston, Montana.
Encounters with humans can also prove fatal for bears. Just last week, a five-year-old female grizzly in Glacier National Park had to be euthanized due to its habit of scavenging food from campgrounds and demonstrating increasingly aggressive behavior.
Grizzlies are protected under federal law, except in Alaska. Elected officials in the Yellowstone region are currently advocating for the lifting of these protections in order to permit grizzly hunting.
Last week, state officials issued warnings of grizzly bear sightings throughout the state, particularly in areas between the Northern Continental Divide and the Greater Yellowstone ecosystems. They urged campers and park visitors to carry bear spray, properly store their food when outdoors, and attend to their garbage responsibly.
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