Teen Injured In Rare Bear Attack
Bear Bites Boy On Camping Trip Near Walsenburg
WALSENBURG, Colo. -- A 16-year-old boy on a Colorado camping trip
chased away a young black bear Sunday morning after it bit his
shoulder.
It was first bear attack on a human in Colorado in more than
three years, said Todd Malmsbury, spokesman for the Colorado
Division of Wildlife.
The boy's name was not released. Officials said that he suffered
scrapes and several puncture wounds. He was treated at a Colorado
Springs hospital and released.
The boy's uncle shot and killed the 130-pound, 3-year-old bear
after it repeatedly returned to the camp site near Walsenburg.
Wildlife officers will take the bear's carcass to Fort Collins
to perform a necropsy and rabies test, which are required when a
bear attacks a human.
Encounters between people and bears in Colorado are common, but
attacks are very rare, Malmsbury said. The bear population in the
state is believed to be more than 10,000.
"Bears come to people's homes and campsites for food all the
time and don't attack anyone," he said.
Wildlife officer Bob Holder said that dry weather and a late-June
freeze that killed acorn-producing oak brush as well as some berry
bushes have combined to reduce the natural forage for bears.
"Things aren't going to get any better for bears over the next
few months," he said.
Bears have killed two people in Colorado in the last 100 years.
Additional Resources:
It was first bear attack on a human in Colorado in more than
three years, said Todd Malmsbury, spokesman for the Colorado
Division of Wildlife.
The boy's name was not released. Officials said that he suffered
scrapes and several puncture wounds. He was treated at a Colorado
Springs hospital and released.
The boy's uncle shot and killed the 130-pound, 3-year-old bear
after it repeatedly returned to the camp site near Walsenburg.
Wildlife officers will take the bear's carcass to Fort Collins
to perform a necropsy and rabies test, which are required when a
bear attacks a human.
Encounters between people and bears in Colorado are common, but
attacks are very rare, Malmsbury said. The bear population in the
state is believed to be more than 10,000.
"Bears come to people's homes and campsites for food all the
time and don't attack anyone," he said.
Wildlife officer Bob Holder said that dry weather and a late-June
freeze that killed acorn-producing oak brush as well as some berry
bushes have combined to reduce the natural forage for bears.
"Things aren't going to get any better for bears over the next
few months," he said.
Bears have killed two people in Colorado in the last 100 years.
Additional Resources:Copyright 2002 by TheDenverChannel.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
