Hungry bears on the move

Bears are on their annual fall hustle for food in the Flathead Valley, prompting a variety of reports, including one from a resident on West Colorado Street in Kalispell who encountered a black bear in her driveway Monday night.

Connie Johnston was painting her house just before dark when a person stopped at the end of her driveway to warn her that there was a bear on the other side of her car.

“I stand up and 10 feet away was a bear on the other side of my car staring at me,” she said. “I probably took four giant steps trying to get to my car door.”

She got in the car and got a good look at the bear, which did not appear threatening. Johnston honked her horn and the bear took off.

“I have an apple tree in my yard and I don’t know if that was his mission,” she said.

It’s a strong probability it was the bear’s mission, said Tim Manley, grizzly bear management specialist for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.

“We’ve had some calls about bears near Lawrence Park and Buffalo Hill, and we’re getting lots of calls from the fringe areas around the valley,” he said.

The calls from Kalispell led to a trap being set in the Buffalo Hill area, but so far there has been no success. Manley said it’s possible that more than one bear has made its way into that part of town by traveling down the Stillwater River corridor.

Also this week, a female grizzly bear and two cubs were captured in the Coram area and relocated after they had been lured in by bird feed and apples.

A resident “encountered the bear near her chicken coop and it kind of spooked her. So we got them out of there,” Manley said.

Manley urges valley residents to pick up cast fruit, secure their garbage and bring in bird feeders and other possible attractants.

“You’d be surprised at how many people call us to tell us that bears are getting into bird feeders,” he said.

Black bears and grizzly bears are entering a metabolic phase that drives them to roam far in search of food.

In the weeks leading up to hibernation, it’s not uncommon for them to move into populated areas.

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