Bear-Caused Human Fatalities in Yellowstone National Park: Characteristics and Trends

• Main Author: Gunther, Kerry A
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: DigitalCommons@USU 2022
• Subjects: American black bear; bear management; bear safety; fatal bear attacks; food-conditioned bears; grizzly bear; outdoor recreation; Ursus americanus; Ursus arctos horribilis; Yellowstone National Park; Zoology; Ursus arctos
• Online Access: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/hwi/vol16/iss3/8; https://doi.org/10.26077/04ea-edae; https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/context/hwi/article/1630/viewcontent/HWI_1630_GuntherEtAl_Final.pdf

Three fatal bear (Ursus spp.) attacks in Yellowstone National Park (YNP), USA, from 2011 to 2015 were a catalyst for YNP managers to evaluate the circumstances of bear-caused fatalities as well as the bear safety messages it distributes to park visitors. I reviewed records of all fatal bear attacks that occurred in YNP from 1872 to 2018. Seven of the 8 fatalities were caused by grizzly bears (U. arctos horribilis). The per capita risk of being killed by a grizzly bear was 1 fatality for every 26.2 million park visits. Most fatal bear attacks in YNP involved surprise encounters and/or bears conditioned to human foods. Only 1 fatal bear attack was classified as predatory. Most fatal bear attacks involved men (75%), small party sizes of(88%), and occurred in remote backcountry areas (75%). Although the frequency of fatal bear attacks appears to have increased in recent years, the per capita risk of fatal bear attacks has declined. A few human behavioral modifications for recreating in bear country, including hiking with minimum group sizes ≥3 people, remaining on designated trails when hiking, not running from bears during encounters, and carrying bear spray when recreating in bear country have the potential to reduce the risk of fatal bear attacks in the park. Preventing bears from becoming conditioned to anthropogenic foods and garbage is another important factor in reducing bear-caused human fatalities.