Grizzly bear knocks over, steps on Washington state hunter in Montana

A Washington state chicken hunter was knocked over and injured when he and his spouse stunned a grizzly bear southeast of Glacier Nationwide Park, the Montana Division of Fish, Wildlife and Parks stated Wednesday.

The 51-year-old man, whose identify and hometown weren’t launched, suffered non-life-threatening accidents within the encounter on Tuesday afternoon on personal property in a creek backside east of the city of Choteau, officers stated.

The couple’s canines went on level and he went to flush a chicken when the 677-pound male bear charged out of thick brush, knocked the person over and stepped on him, stated Dave Hagengruber, spokesperson for the state wildlife division.

The person fired on the bear with a shotgun and a handgun, wounding the animal, which returned to the duvet of the thick brush, wildlife officers stated.

The couple and their canines left the world and notified authorities.

The bear was euthanized later that afternoon after session with U.S. Fish and Wildlife officers as a result of grizzly bears are protected underneath the federal Endangered Species Act. A drone was used to find the bear, Hagengruber stated.

The person didn’t endure claw or chew marks, however did spend Tuesday evening within the hospital, Hagengruber stated.

The bear had no identified earlier historical past of human battle and had by no means been dealt with by bear managers, officers stated. Proof on the web site recommended the assault was the results of a shock encounter.

–The Related Press