Bear Management at Brooks River, Katmai National Park, 2001

Olson, Tamara; Moran, Matthew; Bentley, Erin

Brown bear-human interactions were documented at Brooks River, Katmai National Park and Preserve, from 20 May - 14 October 2001. A total of 267 reports of undesirable incidents involving bears and people were recorded for the 148 days between the first and last documented interactions. Most interactions (80%) were recorded during July and September. Although 18 independent incidents were recorded in which people improperly handled food or fish, a bear obtained food from people in only 1 incident. A multi-year comparison suggested that the regulation limiting human retention of fish at Brooks River to below the floating bridge may have contributed to a reduction in 'fish stealing' incidents. Nine incidents of bear-caused property damage were documented; more than half (n=5) of these resulted from improper storage or handling of food, angler-caught fish, or gear. There were 24 records of bears directly approaching or aggressively approaching people; however, none of these interactions involved intense charges by adult bears. There were 46 documented instances of National Park Service staff actively hazing bears from the Brooks Camp residence area; however, many similar responses that did not involve use of deterrent rounds went unrecorded. Use of deterrent rounds was documented for 12 different responses, including 7 to displace bears from Brooks Camp, 2 to deter bears from damaging property, and 3 planned management actions intended to deter close-range directed approaches by a yearling.