Orphaned Baby Bear Possible Endangered by Early Release into Wild

Canadian authorities want to release an orphaned baby bear into the wild at 6 months when mother bears usually push their children out at 18 months. Animal right groups are very angry and fear the baby might die by itself.

I can't blame the activists. This decision makes little sense to me.

Second Bear Killed On Trans-Canada Highway

Interestingly, we just went on a tour of the Canadian Rockies where the wildlife corridors and fences were lauded by the tour guide as a way for wildlife to avoid the roads. Apparently, there's room for improvement.

From the Calgary Herald....

The second bear to meet its end this year on the Trans-Canada Highway has prompted an animal rights group to call for immediate repairs to a fence line intended to protect wildlife in Banff National Park.

Park staff had been monitoring the bear in the hopes the adult female would avoid the busy roadway.

At one point, they had parked vehicles on the side of the road and flashed their lights, slowing down traffic.

The efforts were to no avail.

The bear was struck last week and found dead two days later.

The southern Alberta chapter of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society has reacted to the death by calling on Parks Canada to reduce the speed limit in areas where the wildlife fence is under construction.

Lake Tahoe Bear Poached for Gall Bladder

Sounds like a crime of opportunity. Beware the disturbing photo.

State wildlife officials are investigating a possible poaching case in which someone removed the gallbladder of a black bear -- which can sell for thousands of dollars in Asia -- after the animal was struck and killed this week by a car in the Lake Tahoe area. The Times' Jia-Rui Chong reports:

The animal was found with its groin area shaved and gallbladder missing early Tuesday, less than 10 hours after a motorist reported striking the bear and California Highway Patrol officers moved it off the roadway. A surgical glove was discovered next to the bear's mutilated carcass.

"It appears that someone knew what they were doing," said Capt. Mark Lucero of the Department of Fish and Game's Northern Enforcement District.

It is illegal to take parts of dead wildlife left on the side of the road, Lucero said.

"A second violation would be if the gall was marketed on the black market," he added.

The penalty for trafficking in bear parts, a felony, is a $10,000 fine and a minimum six months to one year in prison.

Russia Says OK to Kill Bear Cubs

The International Fund for Animal Welfare is reporting the following on bear hunting in Russia....

Hunting for bears with young cubs is illegal in Russia, but the rule is not enforced for hibernating bears.

......under the proposed new regulations, hunters will be permitted to shoot cubs if they discover they have killed the mother in the den.

There are so many things wrong with these two sentences, it's hard to know where to begin. First of all, I just don't understand why you can't kill wide-awake bears with cubs, but you can kill hibernating bears with cubs. It can't be for the benefit of the bears. They are sitting targets when they are hibernating. It must be to protect the almighty hunter. They have a cleaner and safer shot when the bear is hibernating. Otherwise, a mother protecting her young may actually be dangerous and create conditions for a fair fight.

The other is the issue of killing babies. Now, someone could argue that it's "humane" to kill the cubs because they are now motherless and may die from abandonment. But I refuse to be that dismissive and analytical. Because these are BABIES. That is heartless to me. Even though bear hunting is a tradition in Russia, to kill a baby bear is unfathomable to me. I wouldn't even want to meet the hunter who could do it.

Of course, they probably hunt baby seals too so it wouldn't really phase them a bit.

Photo by animalrescueblog.