Wildlife Officials Says Warnings About Grizzlies Unheeded

A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service official says the agency needs to do a better job of informing backcountry users how to avoid dangerous encounters with grizzly bears. Chris Servheen told the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee last Wednesday that the agency has not been successful in making sure the tips it provides are being received. Officials tell the Missoulian that a preliminary review of 2011 bear encounters lists 83 incidents that resulted in two deaths. Officials say four times out of 5 no one was hurt. Servheen says part of the problem is that only 29% of the people charged by grizzlies carried pepper spray. About 75% of the incidents occurred in Yellowstone National Park, and the rest in northwestern Montana.