How bears attack people. The bear has sharp teeth, strong claws, tenacious paws...
A year ago, US resident Alena Hansen was the victim of an attack by a huge black bear, which attacked her while she was working on her ranch in the Southern Sierra mountains. With a powerful blow of his paw, the bear literally scalped the woman. She was lucky that after the blow, the bear was distracted by dogs barking nearby. What's most amazing is that she managed to get to her car and get there! to the fire station, where she was given first aid and doctors were called. I want to warn you right away the following photos are not for the faint of heart.
Photo taken a few months before the attack.
The victim is transported by medical helicopter to UCLA.
Photo two days after the seven-hour operation, which was performed by a team of nearly 100 people led by Kimberly Lee, MD.
And here is the woman today.
During the year of rehabilitation, Alena Hansen managed to write the book “How to Survive After a Bear Attack” and now gives it to everyone.
In it, she talks, in particular, about the features of her “health insurance.” In particular, she thought that after 20 years of insurance payments she had the right to assume that the insurance would cover all necessary expenses. But no: the ophthalmologist, cosmetologist, and dental insurance are not covered, and this is the lion’s share of the expenses that fall on her. In general, her insurance turned out to be a useless piece of paper.
In forests where bears live, the likelihood of meeting the “owner of the forest” is quite high. Cases of bear attacks on humans are not uncommon. For wild animals, people are uninvited guests. And he will defend the territory that belongs to him from these guests.
An encounter with a bear in the forest often ends in tragedy. The beast has strong paws, large claws and sharp teeth. If he gets angry, he can not only cripple a person, but also bully him.
Are bears dangerous?
This is a very dangerous forest predator. It is impossible to predict the outcome of a chance meeting between a person and him. The fact is that the psyche of each animal is different. There are cowardly bears, and there are fearless ones, there are arrogant and aggressive ones, and there are quite calm ones. To the question: “Do bears attack people?” the answer is yes. They attack. And this happens quite often.
The reasons for attacks on people vary. But it should still be noted that attacks without any reason, without provocation on the part of a person, are quite possible. And it is unlikely that a person who sees a massive carcass of a predator is capable of provocations. May God grant you to escape and stay alive.
There are many stories about the unpredictable behavior of animals when meeting a person. Therefore, when planning to visit places where a bear can be encountered in the forest, you need to be prepared for the unexpected. You need to know exactly what to do if you encounter a bear.
The main reasons for attacks by brown bears on people
The behavior of the clubfoot depends on the time of year, age and place of meeting.
Knowing some of the nuances of the animal’s behavior, you can navigate the situation and figure out , how to protect yourself from a bear in the forest.
- Thus, a connecting rod that has come out of hibernation at the wrong time due to some reason (has accumulated little fat or someone has disturbed it) is especially dangerous.
- If you meet an animal near the place where the trophy is buried, the clubfoot will see you as a rival and will try to destroy you.
- At the beginning of spring, when predators come out of hibernation, they are looking for food, therefore they are aggressive and dangerous.
- Late spring is the time for bear weddings. During this period, males are most dangerous. In fights they are cruel and attack everyone they meet on the way.
- A meeting with a mother bear nurturing her cubs is also dangerous. She sees danger from any creature and is ready to fight to the death for her children.
Forest owners are less dangerous in the summer: there is a lot of food, so predators do not try to meet people.
How to behave when meeting
With a sleeping or prey-eating animal
A sleeping animal should never be disturbed. No need to photograph him. Move away immediately! The main thing is not to make noise. If he wakes up, the bear's attack could end sadly.
But what to do if you see a bear eating prey? Freeze and try to demonstrate that you don't need bear food. You should straighten up and start speaking loudly (if you are alone, then pronounce a monologue - whatever comes to mind). You can't show your back to the beast. It is better to retreat back, diagonally, without letting the predator out of sight. Move slowly and smoothly, without sudden movements.
The likelihood of an attack depends on the distance: the shorter it is, the more dangerous the situation.
With a group of animals
You can cross paths with several clubfooted animals at the same time in the following cases:
- during the rutting season;
- during the period when the bear raises her cubs and takes care of them;
- during the period when young animals, driven away by their mother, still move together.
During the rut, animals are very aggressive and fight to the death. Therefore, getting noticed by such a team is deadly. During this period, both males and females are vicious.
Young individuals are less dangerous. They have no experience of meeting people yet, so an attack is not ruled out. But it is much easier to scare them away.
With a teddy bear
A she-bear with a litter poses a danger when she thinks that trouble threatens the children. She will tear anyone for cubs. You should never approach baby bear cubs in the forest. We must try to retreat quickly and silently.
On the hunt
A hunter moving in the habitats of predators puts his life in danger. After all, a beast can be encountered completely unexpectedly. If a bearish figure suddenly flashes on the horizon, try not to catch its eye. You will be lucky if you are on the leeward side, since the predator has a keen sense of smell. If the bear smells you, then make a loud clap with your hands and shoot into the air. There is no need to shoot the animal. Wounded, he is much more dangerous.
What to do if a bear is approaching?
When an animal approaches, you cannot run away. The bear has an excellent sense of smell, but poor eyesight. A low-blind predator sees only a silhouette, so it comes close to examine the object. It happens that an animal begins to walk around a person in order to stand in the wind and smell the smell. It happens that, having recognized a person, he runs away.
You can make an attempt to drive away the clubfoot. If he approaches or pursues, maintaining a distance, then create noise. Tap metal objects such as mugs or pots. Use a rocket launcher, firecrackers, shoot into the air. There are special pepper-based aerosols, but they only work over a short distance in calm weather.
It should be noted that bears often do not plan to attack, they try to force the stranger to leave their territory.
You cannot attack an animal by throwing stones at it. Walk away calmly, backing away, slowly, without sudden movements.
What to do if a bear attacks?
In the event of an attack, you should try to concentrate on your behavior. Let's look specifically at what to do if a bear attacks.
In the absence of weapons, you need to figure out how to distract the attention of the predator. Place any bulky items (basket, bucket, backpack) in front of you.
If there is nothing, then you need to lie on your stomach or curl up in a baby's pose. Clasp your hands above your head to protect it. You should pretend to be dead. Having concentrated all your strength, you must endure it if he starts sniffing you. Sometimes the beast throws dry leaves and branches at the victim. Wait patiently for him to leave. The main thing is not to move.
But if the animal starts to attack, then you should fight back. Try to get it in your eyes. Use sharp objects, aiming for the eye sockets. You can't give up, fighting is the only chance to survive.
You can use a firearm in such a situation if its power allows you to kill the animal, and you know exactly where to shoot the bear.
How to avoid meeting a bear in the forest?
Many people get confused and don't know what to do when they encounter a bear.
If you happen to get into forests where bears live, try to adhere to the following rules:
- try to move in open areas and where the forest is thinner in order to see the animal in advance and try to avoid meeting or scare it away;
- know that bears live in dwarf cedar and willow trees;
- do not walk along bear trails, and if you come across tracks, change the route;
- do not walk along rivers where salmon live at night and before dawn - bear fishing time;
- Walk in bear areas in groups - this way there is less chance of an animal attack;
- You can’t run away from the beast; its speed from a standstill reaches 40-60 km per hour. Move away slowly;
- It is better to try to scare away curious animals that do not show aggression;
- at close range, you don’t need to peer closely into the eyes of the animal - he will regard this as the beginning of an attack;
- at night, it is advisable to light a fire and keep the fire going until dawn - the bright flame will scare away the beast;
- There is no need to walk through the forest at night - you may accidentally stumble upon a bear;
- There is no need to feed forest bears. This is fraught with a loss of fear of people and the emergence of the habit of “begging” for tasty things from people. Those who do not give the animals a treat when meeting them may suffer;
- At rest stops, you need to remove leftover food and try not to spread the smell of food, so as not to attract hungry animals.
Remember that when meeting a predator or being attacked by a bear, only composure can save your life.
Video
Bear attacks on people happen quite often. The forest is a home for animals, but for humans it is an alien environment. For a number of reasons, predators can become aggressive when people appear. Find out why this happens and what to do if you encounter a bear in the forest.
Reasons for the attack
The behavior of a bear depends on several factors. What matters is his age, season, place, circumstances of the meeting:
- In winter, encountering a bear is rare. Sometimes this happens when the animal woke up for some reason (not enough accumulated fat or someone disturbed it) after leaving the den. Such bears are called connecting rods. In winter they are especially aggressive.
- Meeting near the loot storage area. The predator perceives a person as an obstacle to the meal or sees him as a competitor, so he will fight for his property.
- In early spring, bears emerge from hibernation. Over the winter they have spent their fat reserves and are hungry. Hence the tendency to aggression.
- Mating season begins in late spring. A hormonal storm promotes aggression. Males often fight with competitors. For a person, an encounter with a bear during this period promises trouble.
- A meeting with a mother bear with cubs is especially dangerous. The female perceives any living creature as a potential threat to her children. The reason for aggression is the desire to protect offspring.
- In summer the danger decreases. The explanation for this is purely physiological: there is a lot of food around, the mating season is over. However, even in summer you need to do everything possible to avoid meeting a predator.
Meeting options
You can find a bear in the forest in different situations, for example, by accidentally coming across its bedding. Depending on the circumstances of the meeting, it is recommended to structure your behavior.
Meeting with a sleeping bear
You cannot wake up a sleeping predator. You should not linger nearby, talk loudly or take photos. But you can’t run away headlong either. The stomping and cracking of branches will awaken the animal. You should calm down as much as possible and just quietly leave.
Bear eats food
Any predator is characterized by food aggression. The beast considers the stranger to be an encroachment on its food. You need to try to show the lack of any interest in other people's food.
Group of bears
Encountering several bears at the same time is uncommon, but possible. Happens for the following reasons:
- During the rut, animals become aggressive extremely easily. Since there are several predators, the chances of prey are zero. Both males and females show viciousness.
- A group of young bears, when their mother had already driven them away. The cubs live separately, but have not yet chosen their areas for independent living. Young animals are not so dangerous and are easier to scare away.
Mother bear and cubs
An extremely dangerous situation. The bear protects her children. She does not know how uninvited guests will behave, and therefore easily becomes aggressive at the sight of strangers. Even when the mother bear is away, you should not approach the cubs, no matter how cute they look.
The she-bear never leaves her children for long and will definitely return at the most inopportune moment for anyone who wants to take a selfie. You need to quickly leave quietly.
On the hunt
During a hunt, a chance meeting with a predator is possible. Even with a weapon, killing a bear is not easy. It’s better not to tempt fate, but to retreat. When you see the silhouette of an animal, you need to leave quietly. If the animal notices the hunter, a shot in the air will help. It is better not to shoot from an insufficiently powerful weapon. A wounded predator will only become even more angry.
Note! The risk of attack is largely determined by distance. The greater the distance, the less likely the bear is to perceive a person as invading his personal space.
Rules of behavior when meeting
A meeting between a bear and a person creates 2 scenarios for the development of the situation:
- The predator has noticed the person, examines him, but does not take any aggressive actions.
- The beast began to approach, probably an attack.
- Take the most even position possible. Animals study body language. In a slouched person, animals sense fear and uncertainty. Next, smoothly raise both arms up - this will visually increase the person’s height. For a predator, the size of the opponent matters.
- Calm down, try to suppress the fear in yourself.
- Start talking. The topic of the monologue does not matter. The voice should sound confident, but not loud or aggressive.
- Start walking away slowly. It's better to go backwards. Move diagonally, keeping the animal in sight. Movements are smooth. If the predator is far enough away, go around it in an arc.
Approach does not necessarily mean a threat: the bear has poor vision and may come closer to examine the object.
It is also possible that a predator tries to catch the wind in order to smell it. Sometimes, after identifying an object, the bear simply runs away. An approaching predator is not always going to attack. Often the animal just wants to oust the stranger from its territory.
- If the animal is clearly aggressive, the following behavior patterns are possible:
- Fall down pretending to be dead. They do this only if contact with a bear is unavoidable. There are chances that the predator will sniff the body and leave. They only lie face down, no matter how scary it may be to lose visual control of what is happening. You cannot lie on your side or back: the bear can touch you with its clawed paw, and then the injuries to the person lying down will be much more noticeable. If everything goes well, there is no need to immediately jump up and run away. The animal may well simply step back and watch - after all, it recently saw the same object standing. You need to lie down for a while, then carefully look around and silently leave the place.
- You can really scare an approaching animal by making a loud noise. They use everything that is at hand, for example, metal objects. There are special scarecrows, for example, American shooting launchers to scare away predators. They may scare the bear, but they are 50/50 effective. It all depends on the seriousness of the beast's intentions. There are special pepper sprays on sale. Their action is limited in radius. Aerosol products are effective only in the absence of wind.
The attacking predator must be resisted. It would be a good idea to scream and call for help (in case there are people nearby). To protect themselves, they use available means, including stones, branches, sand or earth. The bear's weak spot is its eyes, so you need to try to hit them. Aggressive defense can scare off a predator, especially if we are talking about young animals.
Advice! The animal often throws dry leaves and branches at a person pretending to be dead. The main thing here is to just freeze, patiently waiting for the beast to leave.
What not to do
- When you encounter a bear, you should not do the following:
- Show unmotivated aggression. Do not throw stones or sticks at the animal. An animal that did not intend to attack is able to quickly change its mind.
- Look the predator in the eye. A gaze for an animal is equal to a challenge.
- Trying to hide. This is a pointless activity. The bear will find it anyway. In addition, this is a signal to the predator - there is a prey in front of him.
- You must not turn your back on the bear. The animal will perceive this position as a signal to attack.
- Run away. An attempt to escape is usually doomed to failure. Even over rough terrain, the bear is capable of moving at a speed of 60 kilometers per hour. But the possibility of a successful escape cannot be completely ruled out. Having extraordinary physical fitness and suitable terrain offers a chance to escape. The bear is a sprinter, not a marathon runner, he quickly loses speed. You just need to remember: an unsuccessful attempt to escape from a predator by flight will end sadly, since the animal will definitely begin pursuit.
- Sneak up on an animal. Anyone who likes to take a photo may think that the animal does not notice him. This is a misleading assumption. The animal will consider the approaching person to be an attacker and will defend itself.
- Climb a tree. Brown bears are excellent tree climbers. There is no way to be saved this way. The only exception: the tree is quite branchy and the massive beast will not be able to reach some parts of it.
- Approach the cubs.
Watch a video about how to behave when meeting a bear.
Rules of behavior in the forest
There are simple rules that, if followed, will help protect you from trouble:
- After detecting signs of a bear, you must immediately leave the area. The beast is not necessarily gone forever. Perhaps he has gone off to look for food or is observing the situation from a secluded place. Signs by which one can recognize the presence of a bear: footprints, a torn up anthill, scratched tree trunks, broken young trees, torn up stumps, excrement (droppings).
- Try to get by in the forest without a dog. There are cases when a dog's behavior became the cause of a bear attack.
- You should avoid being in the forest at night. Human vision loses functionality in the dark. The bear is a nocturnal hunter, so it can navigate perfectly in the dark.
- Avoid bushes. Bears are found in such places, especially in raspberry fields. In addition, they live in dwarf cedar and willow forests.
- While in the forest, carefully monitor your surroundings. The forest is an alien, hostile environment.
- It is better to move through open spaces - there is more visibility there.
- If you encounter animals that feed on carrion, or find dead carcasses, move away. Bears are scavengers and come by scent.
- Another favorite habitat of bears is areas along river banks. There are predators fishing. Fishing time is night and before dawn.
- It is advisable to travel in groups. The chances of an attack are greatly reduced.
- Predators are repelled by the bright flames of a fire.
- You cannot feed wild animals. They gradually cease to be afraid of people, but do not acquire good manners.
- You cannot leave leftover food at the rest stop. It is useless to bury it, since the bear has a keen sense of smell.
There are no recommendations that guarantee 100% safety when meeting a bear. The main thing when meeting any predatory animal is to remain calm and try to put into practice all your knowledge in the field of animal habits.
It is also important to follow the rules of behavior in the forest, avoiding getting into dangerous situations.
(lat. Ursus arctos) - a predatory mammal of the bear family; one of the largest and most dangerous land predators. Material from Wikipedia
In many printed publications there are notes that the brown bear has long disappeared from many places of its former habitat. It may have disappeared somewhere, but there are still quite a large number of its specimens in the Primorsky Territory. Judging by the stories of experienced taiga dwellers, and even the residents of the villages adjacent to the forest, this wild animal often leaves the taiga and visits their plots as an uninvited guest.
Usually bears feel most comfortable in the forests, leaving them only in search of food, and their menu is varied, they can steal a chicken, or they can dig up the entire garden, which is on his mind only the bear himself knows. In our city, there are several known cases of the appearance of this terrible beast in the surrounding area, two of them ended tragically, which is very sad. Usually the culprit of a bear attack on a person is the person himself, but in these cases the brown bear was the first to attack.
It is difficult to imagine that the thinking of a clubfoot in some cases is close to human in terms of development. Probably it all depends on the places where the bear lives. This conclusion suggests itself from the incident that happened in the vicinity of the city of Arsenyev.
It was not so long ago, I was then working as a foreman at a parking lot and the meeting with the bear took place at one of the watchmen, I will not give his last name since he is no longer alive. (after that ill-fated meeting with the beast) It all started with the fact that Rumors spread around the city: supposedly a bear had appeared in the vicinity. He was seen in the area of the Oil Depot (15 km from the city) on a dirt road leading into the city. Then the woman who met him was very lucky, the bear tried to attack her, but what do our women do in critical situations? Correctly, they begin to scream and call for help, which is what our lucky girl did, and in addition began to fight off the pestering bear with her handbag.
From the outside, the situation seems funny, but not for that woman. I can't imagine how she felt at that moment. Hearing cries for help, people from the surrounding houses began to come running and with joint efforts they managed to drive away the clubfooted villain. That woman escaped with light scratches and bruises, as they say: she was born in a shirt. The bear was driven into the forest, the people dispersed and life in the village went on as usual. What's next?
And then our clubfooted robber did not calm down, he again went out onto the high road and moved towards the city. The main instinct is the animal instinct of wild animals: never strive for contact with people. They don’t need them at all, which can’t be said about our bear...
On that ill-fated day, the parking lot guard, let’s call him Vasya, collected everything he needed and went fishing on the Arsenyevka River, which flows almost within the city. Having laid out his simple fishing arsenal on the shore and made himself more comfortable, he began to fish. Meanwhile, our bear, either by coincidence or by bad fate, also began to approach this place on the river. Their meeting was inevitable.
You already know how it ended: the bear ate all the insides of the unfortunate fisherman and threw his lifeless body on the shore. I don’t know what I would have done in this situation, I probably tried to run away. Other fishermen heard the screams on the shore and began to gather at that ill-fated place; after seeing the terrifying picture, they called the police.
And our highwayman (now a cannibal), having refreshed himself a little, went to visit the nearest houses in the suburbs. There we met our “valiant” policemen and a man-eating bear. Where the last one was shot with an automatic weapon. It was probably possible not to shoot the bear, but it had already become very dangerous. As I later learned, it was an old and sick bear, no longer able to get food for itself in the forest, this reason pushed the forest dweller to move towards people.
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