Bear Attack

[Jaybird]

from NewsChannel 5 (WTVF-TV) (http://www.newschannel5.com) Nashville:

A 72 year old woman is recovering this morning after being attacked by a black bear. It happened in Gatlinburg... in East tennessee. Investigators say the woman walked out of her cabin & surprised the bear 7 two cubs. The bear bit the woman's leg, hand & forearm. She was taken to a nearby hospital, & is expected to be just fine. Wildlife officials say the bears had been rummaging through garbage on the cabin's deck.

[SGT Rock]

I guess this might be a part of what we heard concerning bears being active outside the park and later in the season this year.

[Gaiter]

so when do bears typically go back to hybernation, whats the latest they'll be out?

[Long feet]

So,

Not to sound heartless, buttThey left their garbage on the back porch in bear country, thereby inviting a mother bear over, then surprised the bears. Sounds about right. She is lucky she is going to be ok.

[Lone Wolf]

Sounds like more of an encounter than an "attack".

[Gaiter]

i was waiting to hear what stupid thing had been done. there is always something, when it comes to animal attacks, w/ the exception of the rare crazied animal/human. there is nothing more annoying than hearing someone talk about how 'that damn crazy animal' attacked them, then you listen to the story, and you realize what they, the human did the wrong that caused the attack, but still blame the animal.

[Ewker]

I spent the whole weekend backpacking in the park and didn't see one bear. Guess I shoud have went to Gatlinburg to see one.

[refreeman]

Sounds like more of an encounter than an "attack".

Are you out of your mind? That’s rhetorical and you don't need to answer as already I see that you are in fact out of your mind.

Attack = startled bear BITES you on you leg, arm and hand.
Encounter = startled bear runs AWAY!

at‧tack, Pronunciation Key - [uh-tak] –verb (used with object)
1. to set upon in a forceful, violent, hostile, or aggressive way, with or without a weapon; begin fighting with:

en‧coun‧ter, Pronunciation Key - [en-koun-ter] –verb (used with object)
1. to come upon or meet with, esp. unexpectedly: to encounter a new situation.

[Blue Jay]

Actually it seems like it's been months since someone tried to terrorize everyone with a bear horror story. I'm SOOOO scared.:eek:

[Playoutside]

hanna,
black bears may never hibernate in the smokies and other southern states if there is an available food supply.
here is some info from blackbear.org

Do bears hibernate? When hibernation was defined simply in terms of temperature reduction, bears were not considered hibernators. New knowledge of hibernation processes has led biologists to redefine mammalian hibernation as simply a specialized, seasonal reduction of metabolism concurrent with the environmental pressures of scarce food and low ambient temperatures. Black bears are now considered highly efficient hibernators. They sleep for months without eating, drinking, urinating, or defecating. Hibernators with lower body temperatures, such as chipmunks, woodchucks, and ground squirrels, cannot do this. These smaller mammals must awaken every few days, raise their temperatures to over 94 degrees, move around in their burrows, and urinate. Some of them must also eat and defecate during arousals. Black bears have far more insulative pelts and have lower surface to mass ratios than the smaller hibernators. As a result, bears' body heat is lost very slowly, enabling them to cut their metabolic rate in half and still make it through winter, maintaining temperatures above 88 degrees--within 12 degrees of their normal summer temperature. (Excerpted from "A Bear In Its Lair" (http://www.bear.org/Black/Articles/A_Bear_In_Its_Lair.html) by Lynn Rogers, Natural History Magazine, October 1981). Mothers wake up to give birth, typically in mid to late January, and take excellent care of the cubs in the den, licking them clean and responding to every cry for warmth and milk.
Length of Hibernation: The length and depth of hibernation is genetically programmed to match the regional norms of food availability. Hibernation is deeper and can last over 7 months in the northern portion of the black bear range where abundant, high quality food is available only from May through August. There, some bears hibernate so deeply, especially the leaner bears after a summer of unusually scarce food, that a person can jostle them for several minutes before they wake up. However, in southern states where food is available year-round, some do not hibernate at all, and those that do are easily aroused. Lean females cannot bring their fetuses to full term and do not give birth.