Man attacks Bear!!!

[smokymtnsteve]

Charlotte Observer,Posted on Fri, Jul. 12, 2002 Fla. man attacks black bear to save deer WILDLIFE VIOLATION Bears sometimes attack deer -- it's what bears do. But a Florida tourist apparently couldn't accept that, rangers say, and he took nature into his own hands by kicking and slamming a young black bear that had pounced on a fawn in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. "He probably thought he was saving Bambi," park spokeswoman Nancy Gray said Thursday.According to a ranger's report, Michael Shaw, 38, of Grand Ridge, Fla., and other visitors became distraught when they saw a 45-pound yearling bear jump on the young deer June 28. Shaw ran toward the animals and began kicking the bear. When it refused to let go of the deer, Shaw picked up the bear and threw it down, the report said. The bear released its grip and ran back into the woods, "probably pretty confused," Gray said. The deer was mortally wounded and had to be euthanized. But park officials said Shaw interrupted nature. He was charged with disturbing wildlife and disorderly conduct -- federal offenses carrying up to $5,000 in fines and six months in jail. -- ASSOCIATED PRESS

[smokymtnsteve]

Bear Attack in Cades Cove
Last year, there were two bear attacks in Cades Cove. However, in both cases, it was humans(and I use that word loosely) attacking the bears. Both attacks occurred when a young and hungry bear was out hunting for food and came upon a fawn hidden in the grass. Of course, the bear proceeded to do his thing as nature dictates, but horrified tourists watching the previously cute and cuddly creature could not allow an even cuter cuddlier creature to be devoured before their eyes. So, a hero stepped forward from the crowds and attacked the bear, wrestling and body slamming the bear against the ground. The dazed and confused bear (in both cases) wandered off hungry without his dinner.
Last Saturday, a tourist let his pit bull loose on a mother bear and cubs as tourists looked on. The mother bear defended her cubs, attacking the dog and chasing it into the crowds, according to this article.
Obviously, the NPS must do something to control the "wildlife" population, as someone is going to get hurt seriously. By "wildlife" in the previous sentence, I'm referring to the idiot tourists who commit such acts as those described above

[MedicineMan]

reminds me of being in Lowes with my oldest daughter, she and I had just been discussing the ignorant; at the cash register out of randomness I asked the clerk where the Sky Hooks were...the clerk puzzled for a second and said 'I know we've got them, aisle 13 that's where I've seen them......'

[smokymtnsteve]

yep...I always take my gap strecher hiking with me..even though it's real heavy it's worth the weight

[dionalaniz]

I'm confused smoky. I thought you've claimed many times that bears are not predators. This story seems to contradict that claim. Black bears attacking live deer - sounds predatory to me.

[smokymtnsteve]

Look at the story dion..I was a very young bear,,,and It didn't kill the fawn....It was a baby bear and like a puppy was playing with the young deer. rough play but play....but no beats are not usaually hunters..they are more savengers ...gatherers


these were two stories i cut and pasted off the web.

[dionalaniz]

Maybe the bear was just trying to save the fawn ala Siegfried and Roy. :-)

Really, c'mon man. I'll buy that predation fulfills only a small part of a bear's diet, but to say that they are altogether not predators at all???!!! Gimme a break. It is quite evident that many people want to view bears as peace loving doves that wish nothing more than sit w/ humans and play patty-cake all day.

Bears are cool. Bears are beautiful. But they don't give a damn about us or any of our notions of "peace and love". If hungry enough and the opportunity arises and the bear thinks it can do so w/ no injury to itself it will make a meal of you, me, a deer, and whatever else it can swallow.

I'm no expert but i've certainly seen National Geographic shows with footage of bears attacking, killing, and eating deer. And the most minimal effort of a google search will reveal that black bears in alaska are highly predatory on moose yearlings.

http://www.state.ak.us/adfg/wildlife.../pred_prey.htm

To insist that black bears are not predators at all is, at its root, caused by a human desire to conceptualize the black bear as our furry, fuzzy, peace loving friend.

[smokymtnsteve]

basically they are big hampsters.....

I've touched one myself..rubbed it right on the head.....

[Ankle Bone]

Steve

You're wrong. They are like big guniea pigs. To compare them to hampsters is just incorrect!!! Bears are nocturnal, like the hampster, but they have no desire to run on a stationary wheel all night.

[smokymtnsteve]

[Uncle Wayne]

Eric of "A Walk in the Woods" of Gatlingburg shuttled us to the parking lot at Clingman's last week and shared some interesting info on bears. He said the University of Tennessee and the NPS had, in a joint venture, been analyzing bears and their diets since the 1940's. Particularly the bears in the Smokies. He said they had never found any evidence of fish remains in the bear scat they have collected over the years. They have found almost everything else but no fish. The theory is catching fish involves to much work and there is an abundance of other food for the bear to eat that is easier to catch / find.

Doesn't mean they won't eat fish, just that they are not a significant part of the food chain for our Smoky Mtn. Bears.

If you've ever seen one of the National Geographic Specials on the bears in the Northwest / Alaska catching salmons you know fishing makes the bears ill tempered. They fight a lot while fishing, especially if some other bear throw his line in another bear's spot. Our Smoky Mtn. bears are more peaceful and don't like to fight so they don't fish as much. That's my opinion.

[Ankle Bone]

Tuna Mac: Dolphin and Black Bear safe!