Montana

Cattle-killing grizzly euthanized near Red Lodge

Posted: Sep 19, 2012 4:49 PM by Q2 News
Updated: Sep 19, 2012 4:49 PM

RED LODGE - A female grizzly bear and her cub that were killing cattle southeast of Red Lodge were captured this week.

The mother bear killed six cows and calves on a ranch in the Bear Creek Basin southeast of Red Lodge this summer, FWP wildlife biologist Shawn Stewart said in a news release. She is also suspected of killing four additional cows.

The five-year-old, 360-pound female was captured and tagged in 2008 as a yearling in Wyoming, just south of the Montana border, when her mother was caught killing cattle. The female was euthanized because of her history with depredation and there was no place in the northern Yellowstone ecosystem that she could safely be released, Stewart said. Her hide and skull will be used for education.

The cub is being held by FWP awaiting an opportunity to send it to a zoo. Because its mother and grandmother had a history of depredation, it is unlikely to be released into the wild, he said.The bears were trapped southeast of Red Lodge in a rolling sagebrush pasture on private land that traditionally is not considered grizzly habitat.

Biologists first noticed the bear and confirmed reports of depredation in the Bear Creek Basin on July 15, Stewart said. They have been trying to capture the bear since.