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The
Alaska Department of Fish and Game in Kodiak has put out another warning for
residents of the city’s north end neighborhoods to keep an eye out for foraging
bears.
Kodiak
wildlife biologist Larry Van Daele says about seven bears have been roaming the
neighborhoods on the north end of town quite a bit lately. One sow with a
two-year-old cub, and a separate pair of sub adults, have been seen the most
frequently, often in the twilight hours between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m.
A
pair of adolescents, quite possibly the two Van Daele mentioned, recently tried
to get into Mary McCarthy’s shed at her Beaver Lake home at about 12 o’clock
the other night.
-- (Bears 1 34 sec “… that’s the end
of that.”)
But,
the pesky bears wound up returning right after she went back inside:
-- (Bears 1b “… driver’s side door window trying
to get at it.”)
Van
Daele says the bears are constantly on the move, so it’s important that when
people have bear encounters they let him know so he can track them better:
-- (Bears 2 39 sec “… give them
advice on how to do that.”)
He
recommends firecrackers, pots-and-pans and air horns, or even shouting at the
bears to startle them and make them go away. Since Kodiak Island is
world-famous for its brown bears, Van Daele says there are better places to see
a bruin than in the city’s residential neighborhoods:
-- (Bears 3 17 sec “… bear’s not
comfortable around people.”)
He
says that residents do have the right to kill a bear in defense of life or
valuable property, but they have the responsibility to make sure they shoot to
kill, do not damage anyone else’s life or property in the process, and must
report the shooting to fish and game right away.
In
Kodiak, I’m Jay Barrett.
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