Subscribe
  • News
    • Local
    • Regional
    • Business
    • Real Estate
    • Outlaw Partners
  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Yellowstone
  • Events
Menu
  • News
    • Local
    • Regional
    • Business
    • Real Estate
    • Outlaw Partners
  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Yellowstone
  • Events

Bear awareness critical as hibernation nears

in News
Bear awareness critical as hibernation nears

bear cans tipped over but not opened OP PHOTO

Outlaw Partnersby Outlaw Partners
September 27, 2021

By Bella Butler EBS STAFF

BIG SKY – After several reports of bear disruption in a Big Sky homeowners association, the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks on Sept. 18 trapped and euthanized a female black bear in the interest of human safety. 

The 172-pound bear was put down after residents and renters in the Hidden Village neighborhood complained that the sow had been raiding cars, trash cans and font stoops the past few weeks, according to Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Region 3 information and education program manager Morgan Jacobsen. 

Article Inline Ad Article Inline Ad Article Inline Ad

As bears prepare for a long winter of hibernation, they enter a phase of excessive eating and drinking called hyperphagia. While they remain active in human communities throughout the summer, bear activity tends to ramp up in fall as they hunt vigorously for food. 

“During that time, bears are active for more hours of the day really focused on consuming calories and protein in prep of hibernation,” said Jacobsen. “They may also have reduced situational awareness during that time as well.”

The euthanized bear was the second of two in the Big Sky area that FWP has put down this summer, a decision that’s at the discretion of FWP, according to Jacobsen.  

“If a bear is obviously conditioned to get food sources from urban areas or developed areas where people are,” Jacobsen said, “it’s not something that relocating the bear will likely solve because bears are creatures of habit. Once they get an easy food source from an anthropogenic area, they’re going to keep coming back to it and so relocating the bear would more or less just move the problem to another area.” 

To put it in perspective, Jacobsen said, FWP has euthanized two bears in the Big Sky area but has received 25-30 reports of bear incidents throughout the season. He added that reports of bear incidents in the area have picked up in the last few weeks.

“We’re aware of a lot of different conflicts happening [from the Yellowstone Club to U.S. Highway 191] kind of recently and so that’s something we’re watching closely,” Jacobsen said. He added that FWP’s is currently focused on educating people to prevent further conflicts with these bears. 

Jacobsen said most of the bear interactions occurring in Big Sky right now are the product of a common narrative: “Bears getting into garbage cans that are left out that are not certified bear resistant, and the bear gets the food reward and it keeps coming back.” 

Properly storing garbage is at the top of FWP’s recommendations for how to keep bears out of urban areas. In addition to measures people can take at home, Jacobsen said it’s important for recreationists in the area to remain astute and make frequent noise when they’re in bar country. 

“In places where we have recreationists … bears may not be able to detect human presence as quickly and as easily as they would at other times of the year,” Jacobsen said of the hyperphagia period. See page 23 for more tips on staying safe while recreating in bear country.

Outlaw Realty Outlaw Realty
Outlaw Realty
ADVERTISEMENT

Listen

Hoary Marmot Podcast

Joe Borden & Michele Veale Borden

Lastest Episode
See More Episodes

Upcoming Events

May 8
May 8 @ 7:00 pm - May 11 @ 5:00 pm

Hansel and Gretel

May 10
12:00 pm - 3:30 pm

Red Cliff Shooting Range Cleanup and BBQ

May 13
5:30 pm - 8:30 pm Event Series

American Legion Bingo

May 15
3:30 pm - 4:30 pm Event Series

Flag Raising at Soldiers Chapel

May 16
7:00 pm - 9:30 pm Event Series

Trivia at Waypoint

View Calendar
Event Calendar

Related Posts

Big Sky May 6 election results
Featured

Big Sky May 6 election results

May 6, 2025
Big Sky track teams race towards end of season
News

Big Sky track teams race towards end of season

April 29, 2025
Wildfire Wire: Pitch in for all of us 
News

Wildfire Wire: Pitch in for all of us 

April 29, 2025
Skim or swim: Big Sky’s closing weekend makes a splash with the return of pond skim
Featured

Skim or swim: Big Sky’s closing weekend makes a splash with the return of pond skim

April 28, 2025

An Outlaw Partners Publication

Facebook-f Instagram X-twitter Youtube

Explore Big Sky

  • About/Contact
  • Advertise
  • Publications
  • Subscriptions
  • Podcast
  • Submissions

Outlaw Brands

  • Big Sky PBR
  • Hey Bear
  • Mountain Outlaw
  • Outlaw Partners
  • Outlaw Realty
  • Plan Yellowstone

Copyright © 2025 Explore Big Sky | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Your Privacy Choices

No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Regional
    • Business
    • Outlaw Partners
  • Yellowstone
  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Sports
  • Opinion
  • Real Estate
  • Events

©2024 Outlaw Partners, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Explore Big Sky Logo
  • News
    • Local
    • Regional
    • Business
    • Real Estate
    • Outlaw Partners
  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Yellowstone
  • Events
Subscribe
Facebook X-twitter Instagram Youtube