Bullets or bear spray?
Hey savvy news reader! Thanks for choosing local.
You are now reading
1 of 3 free articles.
News from CSKT Natural Resources Department
Many hikers or anglers may answer that bullets are more effective protection from bears, guns are made to kill and bear spray doesn’t, right? But when it comes to self defense against grizzly and black bears, the answer is more complicated.
Most cases of surprise human bear encounters where a charging bear is shot resulted in an attack and the hunter was badly hurt. Experienced hikers and anglers have learned that despite the use of a firearm against a charging bear, they were attacked and injured.
Evidence of human bear encounters suggest that shooting a bear can escalate the seriousness of an attack, while encounters where firearms are not used are less likely to result in injury or death of the human or the bear. Law enforcement investigations support that persons encountering grizzly bears and defending themselves with firearms suffer injury about 50% of the time while persons defending themselves with bear spray escaped injury most of the time and those who were injured experienced shorter duration attacks and less severe injuries.
Stacy Courville, Tribal Bear Biologist, report that bear numbers are increasing in northwestern Montana and so are the numbers of people. The likelihood of encountering a bear increases as well. Awareness of bear behavior is important to avoiding human bear contact.
Courville said you can minimize your risk of a surprise bear encounter in the following ways:
1. Travel in groups in the back country, make noise and carry bear spray, have it accessible and know how to use it.
2. Be aware of your surroundings: wind, water, dense brush and any bear sign such as scat, tracks or rubs.
3. Remember that at the end of a hike or a day of fishing most people tend to be tired and distracted.
4. Be prepared, carry bear spray in your hand, chest or belt holster. You won’t have time during a surprise encounter to dig your bear spray out of your pack.
5. Hikers or anglers with off-leash dogs have a higher likelihood of having a negative encounter with a bear.
No deterrent is 100-percent effective but compared to the alternatives, including firearms, carrying bear spray and knowing how to use it is the best method for preventing injury to bears and humans.
For more information on bear spray and how to use it contact Germaine White at germainew@cskt.org or call 675-2700 ext. 7299.
