Darted grizzly cub died of internal bleeding

A grizzly cub died last week from internal bleeding that apparently was not related to a tranquilizer dart, Glacier National Park officials announced Monday.

A necropsy performed by Jennifer Ramsey, wildlife veterinarian with the Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, found the yearling cub died from a ruptured jugular vein.

The bear did not die from the initial darting, but from the subsequent vein problem, according to a press release from Glacier Park.

Ramsey could not determine how the vein was ruptured.

The cub died soon after it was tranquilized on Aug. 17, despite an effort to revive it with mouth-to-nose breathing and CPR. Its sibling was captured and is destined for the Bronx Zoo.

The cubs were tranquilized after their mother was shot and killed by park rangers near Oldman Lake on the east side of Glacier Park.

The 17-year-old female grizzly was targeted because its behavior went well beyond the behaviors of nuisance bears that are often moved to new areas, according to Jack Potter, Glacier's chief of science and natural resources.

The grizzly, often with her cubs nearby, repeatedly approached hikers on trails, entered campgrounds occupied by people and sniffed at occupied tents at night.

Encounters documented this July alone led the park's bear management team to conclude that she was "highly conditioned to humans," which prompted the decision to remove her from the wild population.