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4 grizzly bears linked by DNA to deadly attack on mother and daughter in Canada
DNA tests linked four grizzly bears, a female and her three yearling cubs, to the deaths of a mother and daughter in western Canada. Wildlife officials said the attack was likely predatory, which they described as very rare, and killed all four bears because they posed a danger to the public.
The remains of Jenny Balcarras, 48, and Selah Reed, 20, were found near a trail outside Bella Coola, about 620 miles north of Vancouver. Reed’s remains were found in a bear cache after her family raised the alarm when she missed a routine call. Officials said these bears were not involved in a separate attack last November that injured 11 people, including two critically; the latest deaths have renewed distress in the Nuxalk Nation community.
In short
- DNA linked four grizzlies to the deaths of a mother and daughter.
- Officials said the attack was likely predatory and rare.
- The community is still recovering from an earlier bear attack.
Explained simply
Grizzly bears are native to western Canada and usually avoid people, although encounters can happen where people live, travel or work in bear habitat. A bear cache is food or prey a bear has stored, sometimes under leaves or soil.
Bella Coola is a community in British Columbia, on the traditional territory of the Nuxalk Nation. The Nuxalk Nation is an Indigenous community with deep connections to the area, where the landscape and wildlife are part of everyday life.
Wildlife officials assess bear attacks to understand what happened and whether an animal may remain a danger to people. When bears are judged to pose a continuing risk, officials may kill them; such decisions can be especially difficult for communities affected by both human loss and the killing of wildlife.