illegal grizzly taken in Idaho

[Emily]

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5ibET ... TCFTv4805A

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Killing of Rare Grizzly Bear Probed
By KEITH RIDLER – 3 days ago

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Federal and state wildlife officials said Friday they are investigating the killing of a grizzly bear in north-central Idaho, where the last confirmed sighting of the species was in 1946.

The bear, a member of a threatened species, was killed Monday by a hunter near Kelly Creek about three miles from the Montana border, said Steve Nadeau, statewide large carnivore manager for the Idaho fish and game department.

Nadeau said the bear was not confirmed as a grizzly until Friday, after the hunter and guide had packed it out of the remote, roadless area and contacted authorities.

Officials did not release the identities of the hunter or the guide, who was not present when the bear was killed.

Nadeau said the hunter, who is from Tennessee, was on a guided trip, hunting black bear with bait. Black bear hunting season opened Aug. 30.

Nadeau said the male grizzly weighed 400 to 500 pounds and was 6 to 8 years old. The hunter and guide skinned the carcass and brought it out on horseback so it could be confirmed as a grizzly by authorities, Nadeau said.

It is now in the possession of state fish and game department.

In April, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service lifted Endangered Species Act protections for grizzlies in and around Yellowstone National Park.

But the bear killed Monday was not part of that population, Nadeau said, and therefore retained federal threatened-species protection. He said that is why the investigation also involves federal authorities.

Asked whether the hunter would likely face penalties, Nadeau said the matter was under investigation.

Chris Servheen, Fish and Wildlife grizzly bear recovery coordinator, said the death was under investigation.

In a federal court lawsuit, several environmental groups have challenged the federal decision to lift the 32-year-old "threatened" status for the 500 to 600 Yellowstone-area bears, which live in parts of Wyoming, Idaho and Montana.

The groups say the grizzly gene pool is still too small to assure future viability of the species that once roamed the area by the thousands.

The bear killed this week was in the Selway-Bitterroot ecosystem that includes part of north-central Idaho and western Montana, and where wildlife officials have been expecting grizzly bears to repopulate on their own.

"We've put an awful lot of effort in over the years to verify grizzly bears are in the Selway ecosystem," Nadeau said. "That's one area where we expected grizzly bears to show up — Kelly Creek."

Nadeau said the bear possibly came from the Cabinet-Yaak ecosystem in western Montana or the Northern Continental Divide ecosystem that includes Glacier National Park. DNA tests are planned to try and determine the bear's origin.

Prior to Friday, Nadeau said Fish and Game had been telling black bear hunters that there were no grizzly bears in the area. He said hunters are now being warned that grizzlies are in the area, and that they are not legal to hunt.

"Where there's one there are likely others," said Nadeau. "Grizzly bears, like other animals, try to find each other."

[Scratch]

Thats's a bunch of Bull S%it when they (US Fish & Wildlife) tell people there hasen't been grizzlies sighted since 1946. When I was guiding in the Selway (Montana & Idaho) the Game and Fish and USF&WS where telling the local Outfitters to be aware because they were dropping (planting)troubled bears from Yellowstone into the Selway back 1983 0r 1984.

More lies, especially when they tell the puplic that Idaho, Montana and Wyoming have 500 to 600 bears. Hell Wyoming, outside the park has 500 bears or more from Cody down to Dubois in the Bridger Teton National Forest

And now we have to put up with all these wolves....hopefully not for long before we can start to manage their population.

Scratch

[Earl Hickey]

Thanks for sharing scratch, and those managers have always had trouble getting it right haven't they.

You said a mouthful there pard. Course I've noticed readin some of these websites the managers ain't the only ones that have trouble getting it right.

So the problem of gettin it right don't seem exclusive to just game managers, seems to run pretty deep in the hound game as well.

[Grzyadms4x4]

Ike, Check your p.m.'s.

Now as far as grizzlies are concerned I look forward to the day when I can run a pack of of dogs on em down here in AZ, like Montague Stevens and Ben Lilly and other did back in the day.

If you'all don't want em send them down here!

[tylers dad]

Grzyadms4x4, well said. I started to reply to the hijacked thread but then changed my mind. It sure does get old.

The griz was shot last fall over a bait. It is in a unit where you could shoot two black bears. Of course now they will probably stop all bear hunting in that unit for fear of more grizzlies getting shot.

[Beartree]

GRYSLYADMS; I have two grizzlies on my bait you just come on up. We'll see how pumped you are about running them after a race or two. It's one thing to read about it in a book. And I'll also send you all these damn wolves your way too.