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Grizzly bears captured, moved after accessing food attractants

Grizzly bears captured, moved after accessing food attractants
Posted at 9:26 PM, Oct 22, 2020
and last updated 2020-10-22 23:26:35-04

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks captured an adult female grizzly bear and male cub on private property off Columbia Falls Stage Road near Columbia Falls Wednesday night.

FWP said the bears were reportedly tipping over garbage cans at residences near the Flathead River south of town and eating domestic fruit that had fallen into residential yards. The bears also accessed unsecured garbage on a back porch of a residence.

The adult female was previously captured for a research project and is 19-years-old. It previously lived in Glacier National Park, and FWP moved the bears to the Logan Creek area in the park after consulting with the National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

FWP reminds residents to be "bear aware" as this is the fifth incident with grizzlies since Sept. 11 where action was required from FWP. FWP has also received numerous other reports about bear activity.