https://www.jhnewsandguide.com...0a-60b51716955d.html


LINK HAS PHOTO OF THE BEAR.



Dead griz along Yellowstone River now subject of poaching investigation

By Todd Wilkinson Mountain Journal (mountainjournal.org) 5 hrs ago

Grizzly 394
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is investigating the illegal removal of the head and paws of pictured Grizzly 394, which perished and came to rest on the shores of the Yellowstone River near Gardiner, Montana.


An old dead grizzly bear that attracted photo opportunities for rafters floating the Yellowstone River just north of Yellowstone National Park has now become the subject of a criminal investigation after both the bruin’s head and its claw-filled paws were removed from its body.

Kevin Frey, senior grizzly specialist with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, told Mountain Journal the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is taking a lead role in the case because removing parts from a federally protected animal is a violation of the Endangered Species Act and punishable potentially by fines and jail time.

“I understand the desire someone might have to take the head and claws as souvenirs, but what they did — whether they realize it or not — is a serious matter and it’s against the law,” Frey said. “It makes no difference if a person poaches a bear to kill it or to take its hide and claws as trophies or comes upon a dead grizzly and decides to help themselves to the parts. Grizzlies are a federally protected species and it’s illegal.”


Transporting grizzly parts across state lines is also a violation of the federal Lacey Act, a law that first came on the books as a result of a bison poaching case in Yellowstone more than a century ago.

Apart from the latest poaching intrigue, the sudden appearance of the grizzly carcass in June set off a buzz of public attention in and around Gardiner, Montana, a Yellowstone gateway community and Yellowstone River town. It started after the 25-year-old bruin’s hulking body was spotted at the edge of the river and could even be seen from houses above.

As avid speculation ensued among locals about the potential cause of the bear’s demise, including people who posted their theories on social media, the dead male griz also became a magnet for humans wanting to pose with it.

“It’s kind of amazing to me how popular the dead bear was,” said Kerry Gunther, Yellowstone National Park’s chief bear management specialist who has spent three decades studying grizzlies and lives in Gardiner. “Every raft guide in town going down the river probably stopped. People who were rafting would stop and hold the bear up and get a picture. It was quite the tourist attraction. I would bet that half the town of Gardiner went out and looked at it.”

Gunther did not venture down to the river to inspect the bear, but he did see it from Highway 89 and the photos taken, which showed it had an ear tag. According to Frey, the state had planned to remove the animal either via helicopter or by boat, but by the time arrangements could be made for transport someone had already gotten to the grizzly and severed its head and paws.

The bear, which had been given the numeric ID 394, had for years been part of ongoing grizzly research efforts carried out by Yellowstone National Park, other agencies and the United States Geological Survey’s interagency grizzly bear study team. In reviewing 394’s file, Gunther said the bear had a home range that encompassed Hayden Valley in the center of the park but, like many male grizzlies, ranged widely.

Looking back at significant events in the bear’s life, Gunther highlighted several points of intrigue. Grizzly 394 had been caught four times by bear managers in 2011, as park officials attempted to capture a grizzly that killed 59-year-old John Wallace from Michigan. In August of that year Wallace was fatally mauled while he hiked alone along Mary Mountain Trail in Yellowstone’s Hayden Valley.



Grizzly 394 was not implicated in the fatal attack, Gunther said, though he was among several bears that were in the area following Wallace’s death, some of which may have fed on the hiker’s body — this according to details presented in a federal report that investigated the incident.

A decade prior, as a 5-year-old, 394 roamed Yellowstone but headed south. “The interesting thing is he was involved in sheep depredations on the Bridger-Teton National Forest in 2001,” Gunther said. “He was trapped and relocated and then stayed out of trouble the rest of his life.” Gunther added that the sheep depredations happened near Klondike Creek in the Upper Green River drainage and the bear was transported to Mormon Creek between Yellowstone’s East Entrance and Cody on the Shoshone National Forest. After that, 394 headed back to familiar terrain in Yellowstone.

It’s not clear how 394 died, and the cause may never be known. Gardiner-based naturalist and wildlife artist George Bumann had taken photos of the bear, posted them on Facebook and speculated that 394 might have died following a violent scrape with another male grizzly. His musing was published at Mountain Journal.

Both Frey and Gunther said there is no overt evidence to support the theory of 394 being killed by another bruin, though Frey said the animal did have slight nonfatal facial wounds consistent with coming in contact with another bear.

As far as 394 being called, by some, “a Hayden Valley bear,” Gunther noted: “It’s not that far a stretch to have a bear associated with Hayden Valley turn up in places a long ways away like the northern end of the park.”

Gunther added that “we have males [bears] that use Lamar Valley and have gone all the way out [more than 100 miles] to the Centennial Valley in far southwest Montana.”

Frey and Gunther say it is entirely possible 394 might have died trying to ford the Yellowstone River and was drowned. “What we do know is his teeth were bad, which isn’t uncommon for a grizzly that old,” Frey said, noting that photos confirmed both worn down or chipped molars and canid teeth. Both bear experts further noted that while 394 weighed 500 pounds in his prime, his muscle mass and physical appearance were in obvious decline.

Frey cited a handful of incidents in which poachers in Montana have killed grizzlies and removed their capes, heads and claws. However, Gunther noted, “In my career we’ve never had a grizzly poached in the park that we’ve found.”

How uncommon is it for a male bear to reach a quarter century old? “Inside Yellowstone it’s not that unusual,” Gunther said, noting that the oldest bear documented in the park was 31. “Outside the park where there are so many more things and ways that bears can get into trouble, reaching that age is probably more rare.”

Frey encourages those with information about the removal of 394’s head and paws to call 1-800-TIP-MONT (800-847-6668). He said tipsters can remain anonymous and still be eligible for a reward.


Contact Mike Koshmrl at 732-7067 or env@jhnewsandguide.com.

How GD stupid all the way around?! F&G knew the dead bear was there, but didn’t care enough to recover it, or even inspect it(I guess that wasn’t too important to the research???). And yet “half the town” went down to look it over....

So some idiot gets gutsy and sneaks down and removes the head and claws from the dead bear. And now he is being sought by the fish cops to be charged with removing parts of a federally protected animal?!

It was a dead bear! Jeezus!

I just pray that the idiot isn’t a hunter, because you know that is what the press will focus on. I can see the headline now “Local Hunter Charged with Poaching Revered Grizzly” with the subtitle reading “Man Admits to Using Chainsaw to Cut Off Head of Bear Know to His Admirers as Flouncy”.

Give me a break.

I agree, dead bear and it is a man hunt/most wanted now…
F & G dropped the ball and now they are gonna waste hunters money to chase their own inability
Stupid…

Happens when the people give the government too much power.

quote:

Originally posted by p dog shooter:
Happens when the people give the government to much power.

"TOO" not to! Proofread or learn!

Thanks Jim one always need a good editor.

Any grizzly reintroduction into Colorado efforts going forward?