An investigation into the death of a 70-year-old hiker who was mauled by a grizzly bear near Yellowstone National Park last month provides some important insight into what happened and how future attacks may be avoided.
While the death was a tragic accident, the report by the investigation team recommends some changes in policy by the Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team that make sense.
Two IGBST researchers trapped an adult male grizzly in a previously set snare on June 17 in the Kitty Creek drainage of the North Fork of the Shoshone River. It was the final day of a trapping operation that began in the area May 27. The bear was tranquilized and radio collared, then left to wake up on its own.
The researchers then took down the warning signs that had been posted to alert any hikers that a dangerous bear was in the area. The weather was cold and windy with intermittent snow showers, and the researchers believed it was unlikely anyone would be hiking so far off maintained trails. None had been seen.
However, Erwin Evert, a botanist from Illinois who had lived seasonally in a cabin with his wife at the mouth of Kitty Creek for 40 years, went hiking that day. The investigation disclosed that Evert knew the research crew was in the area attempting to trap grizzly bears, and that he had even had a phone conversation with his daughter that day in which he expressed the hope that he would "catch up to the guys" so he could ask them about their work.
Mrs. Evert notified the team, as it was leaving the area, that her husband was late returning from his hike. One of the researchers went back to the site where the bear had been tranquilized and discovered Evert's body.
The probe indicated that for reasons unknown, Evert had diverted from his usual hiking route and was about 1,700 feet off the main trail when he was mauled and killed. All warning signs had been removed from the area, and he was not carrying any bear spray or weapons.
The bear was subsequently killed by management agencies on June 19 "in order to err on the side of public safety." Later, DNA from the grizzly was matched to bear hair recovered from Evert's body.
The investigation team recommended that a standardized written protocol on the use of warning signs be produced and used by all agencies. It said the signs should be posted at the beginning of capture operations and remain up for at least three days after such operations have ceased.
Land management agencies, the team said, should consider adopting special orders similar to those used in the Shoshone National Forest to legally close areas behind posted signs in bear trapping areas. Violations of closures, it added, should be reported to law enforcement personnel of the appropriate agency.
Automatic cameras at capture sites, the report said, could help document how long bears stay after they are left to recover from immobilizing agents. When possible and appropriate, it recommended using drugs that can be reversed to accelerate the recovery of immobilized bears.
Finally, the team said agencies should inform the public through press releases or other means that grizzly bear trapping for research and monitoring is occurring in an area.
It's understandable why the researchers thought no one would be hiking where they left the bear because of inclement weather, and removing the signs made sense at the time. But as this unfortunate incident clearly showed, it's difficult to limit all grizzly encounters even when a hiker fully knows that bears are being trapped in a given area. Leaving the warning signs in place for at least three days after research is completed is an extra safety precaution that's warranted, because it could help save lives in the future.
