Bears emerging from dens early this year

Dead goats north of Columbia Falls were among the first signs that bears were emerging from their dens early this year.

And the signs keep coming, said Eric Wenum, wildlife conflict specialist for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, who is urging rural residents to secure food attractants that bears can reach.

The dead goats at a residence on the North Fork Road, just north of Aluminum Drive, were initially thought to be the work of a mountain lion. But an investigation by Wenum and federal trapper Ted North led to a conclusion a black bear had killed the animals.

And that was somewhat surprising to Wenum, considering the goats had been killed March 10 and 11.

Den emergence is "normally something I'd start to see in mid-to-late May," he said.

The owner of the goats found two of them dead in their pen on March 10 and assumed they had died. But the next morning, she found two more dead goats and called Fish, Wildlife and Parks for help.

Wenum said it appears the bear had gotten ahold of one goat the first night, and a second goat killed itself in an attempt to escape, slamming its head into a cattle panel fence and breaking its neck. The second day, the bear killed two goats, but was unable to get their carcasses out of the pen, Wenum said.

Wenum set a trap in the area to capture the bear, but it never returned.

Since then, he has been getting reports of troublesome bears that he normally wouldn't get at this time of year. Light snow and relatively warm temperatures have played a part in the early emergence of bears.

Another contributing factor, he said, is the poor natural food conditions that were prevalent across Northwest Montana last fall. Many bears went into their dens in relatively poor condition, he said.

Now that days are longer, bears that have emerged are not likely to go back into their dens, Wenum said.

"People have the misperception that these little spats of snow we've been getting will make a difference," he said. "But once they are out, they don't make a difference at all. They're not going back into the den."

On Monday alone, Wenum said he had six bear-related calls. Recent activity has mostly been in the Whitefish, Bigfork and Foothills Road areas.

"They're all getting into stuff, whether it's trash or bird feeders," he said. "They're getting into unsecured foods, so people need to be extra diligent and secure those kinds of attractants. It's time. Spring has sprung and bears are out."

Reporter Jim Mann may be reached at 758-4407 or by e-mail at jmann@dailyinterlake.com