Bow hunters kill Yaak grizzly

The Daily Inter Lake

Game wardens are investigating the killing of a grizzly bear in the Yaak region northwest of Libby on Saturday.

Two bow hunters reported that they had killed the bear that day.

"There is a claim of self-defense and that is being investigated," said Wayne Kasworm, a grizzly bear biologist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Because the incident is being investigated by Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks wardens, Kasworm said he could not provide further details about what transpired in the Spread Creek drainage, where the carcass of the adult female grizzly was found.

The 11-year-old bear was accompanied by two cubs, and one of those cubs - a 2-year-old female - was captured in a trap set near the mother's carcass.

That bear was radio-collared and is being monitored. Another bear was heard in the same area but was not seen or captured.

Kasworm said he believes the adult female was captured as a yearling in 1997 because of the presence of tag holes in her ears. A genetic analysis is expected to confirm the identity of the bear.

Kasworm said he lost track of the bear about seven years ago.

"I have not known about her presence in the Yaak since she was a 4-year-old and that would have been in about 2000," Kasworm said.

The Cabinet-Yaak grizzly bear population is imperiled, with the Fish, Wildlife Service officially estimating that there are just 20 to 30 bears in the Yaak portion and an additional 10 to 20 in the Cabinets.

The loss of a female is significant, Kasworm said. But he added that it is good to know about the presence of two cubs.

"We were not aware of her cubs," he said.