Bear Trapped and Tranquilized In Cades Cove

Wildlife officials in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park had to trap and tranquilize a bear yesterday in Cades Cove. Crews had received notification of a bear that was getting too close to humans. This bear had been seen eating leftover walnuts under a walnut tree recently…but the bear was allowing people to get too close to it, as some were throwing food to it and some people were even enticing it with peanut butter trying to get it to come closer.

Officials in the park trapped and tranquilized the bear yesterday and tagged it then released it back into Cades Cove…trying to condition the bear to be fearful of humans. According to wildlife biologist Bill Stiver, this method is 60% successful in getting the bear to be afraid of humans to where they don’t have to deal with that bear again. The ultimate goal is to keep the bear from being what they call “food- conditioned” to where the bear will approach cars, people and homes in search for food. Park service law enforcement is looking into the incident of the people trying to feed the bear peanut butter.