A grizzly bear who accidentally gave himself a burst of pepper spray attacking a hiker in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming will not be captured or killed because it may have been trying to protect a cub, park officials said in a statement.
While mauling a hiker on Signal Mountain, the grizzly bit into the man’s can of bear repellent and was hit by a burst of it, sending the animal fleeing. The 35-year-old Massachusetts man, who had pretended to be dead while being bitten, managed to escape to safety and spent Sunday night in the hospital.
There was no word on when Signal Mountain or a road and trail to the 2,300-meter (7,700-foot) summit would reopen after being closed due to the attack. Such closures are typical after the handful of grizzly attacks on public lands in the Yellowstone region each year.
The decision not to pursue the bears, which officials determined were behaving naturally after being surprised, was also consistent with attacks that did not involve raiding campsites, eating food left out by humans, or similar behavior that makes bears more dangerous.
Rangers track and study many of the approximately 1,000 bears in the Yellowstone region, but were not familiar with those responsible for the attack Sunday afternoon, the statement said.
The attack occurred while the victim was carrying bear repellent spray and making noises to warn bears in the forest, the statement said.
When he spoke to park rangers afterward, the man said he encountered a small bear running away from him. As he grabbed his bear repellent, he saw a larger bear charging towards him in his field of vision.
He didn’t have time to use his bear spray before he fell to the ground with his fingers tied behind his neck and one finger holding the spray can.
The bear bit him several times before biting the can of pepper spray, which burst and scared the bears away.
The man reached an area with cell phone coverage and called for help. A helicopter and then an ambulance evacuated him to a nearby hospital.
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Researchers suspect from the man’s description that the smaller bear he saw was an older cub belonging to the female grizzly that attacked. Mother bears aggressively defend their offspring and stay with them for two to three years after birth.
Park officials have not released the victim’s name. He was expected to make a full recovery.
Recent grizzly attacks
The attack in Grand Teton National Park came just days after a man was killed in Canada suffered “significant injuries”. after being attacked by a grizzly bear while hunting with his father.
Last fall, a Canadian couple and their dog were killed by a grizzly bear while backpacking in Banff National Park. A few weeks before, there was a hunter in Montana severely damaged by a grizzly bear.
Last July, a grizzly bear fatally mauled a woman on a forest trail west of Yellowstone National Park. The bear was later euthanized after breaking into a home near West Yellowstone in August.
Also that month there was a 21 year old woman planting trees seriously injured by a bear in British Columbia. Canadian officials were unable to locate the animal but believe it was a grizzly bear that attacked the woman.
According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, grizzly bears are protected as an endangered species in the 48 contiguous states.
Last month, the U.S. National Park Service announced it would launch a campaign to capture grizzly bears in Yellowstone Park for research purposes. The agency urged the public to avoid areas with traps, which would be clearly marked
