Black bear removed from Fish Creek area
By Cory Hatch, Jackson Hole, Wyo.
June 25, 2009
State bear managers relocated a black bear Monday after the animal tried to enter residences on Fish Creek Road.
Officials also received reports of a bear roaming through Jackson on Monday morning.
Wyoming Game and Fish Department bear management specialist Mike Boyce captured the 3-year-old male bear in a culvert trap and relocated the animal to the Spread Creek drainage near Grand Teton National Park.
“He was pushing on doors and windows at several different residences,” Boyce said. “He’d obviously received a good food reward somewhere.”
Boyce said the capture is a good reminder that people need to take extra care with things that might attract bears.
“This time of year, [although] bears are probably preoccupied with the abundance of natural foods, the potential for conflicts still exists,” he said.
New county standards that go into effect Wednesday require bear-resistant trash containers or enclosures in much of Teton County, including the Fish Creek area. The standards also require people to hang bird feeders 10 feet high and four feet from the supporting structure.
“Even people who live outside of the bear conflict priority zones, especially at the base of Snow King, still should be proactive and store their garbage and birdseed properly,” Boyce said.
