When a good smell of pizza wafts over their snout, a bear will follow it off the bear highway, otherwise known as a creek with cover, and that’s often when they get into trouble.  

Bear Country is everywhere on the Flathead Indian Reservation, Tribal Game Warden Chief Dan McClure said. Bear problems or encounters occur wherever there is a source of water, natural cover and a food source, which is a considerable number of properties in the area.  

But that food source isn’t just rabbits, McClure said. It’s the unprotected attractants, such as trash cans in town or livestock near habitat.  

“Bears are obviously free-roaming critters, and they are motivated by food,” McClure said.  

When a bear gets into trouble, McClure or another tribal game warden is called to the situation. McClure said a warden is instructed to go out to the property, complete an assessment and determine the attractants.  

He explained that the warden works with the homeowner and recommends what attractants need to be removed. Often, after a couple of days, the bear will stop returning to that location.  

“Bears know how to live with people as long as they're getting rewarded for it,” he said. 

McClure, who has many stories about residents' bear encounters, said that homeowners with bear problems often feed pets outside, have fruit trees or have unprotected livestock. Even this editor has witnessed the bears tipping trash cans in St. Ignatius, hoping one isn’t securely closed so they can enjoy a nice snack.  

“You can walk in Mission at night and listen to the dogs. There’s a group of dogs barking, and you know there’s a bear down there,” he said.  

McClure explained that when he was a warden in the field, the residents of St. Ignatius had a heavy number of bear problems due to fruit left by several fruit trees and trash cans that lacked bear-proof features.  

However, he said that with residents now using bear cans and the Confederated Salish & Kootenai Tribes Fruit Gleaning program — which helps collect unpicked fruit — has significantly decreased the bear problems in Mission.  

Now, McClure has experienced a recent uptick in calls in Hot Springs. Upon observation, McClure said it is like Mission was back then, and he suggests they take the same actions to decrease the bear problems.  

But recently he had a bear in Hot Springs learn there was a nice chicken dinner available from a coop, and the electric fence didn’t stop his appetite. This bear was not only coming back for the reward of food but was also habituated to humans, which ultimately led the wardens to put the bear down.  

McClure explained that they never want to put a bear down, but when a bear is used to people, it can cause larger problems.  

Another common bear complaint they get is from homeowners with unprotected livestock near bear habitat. The bear learns that the food source is there and will keep returning to the area, so in this case, wardens will trap and relocate the bear.  

“Bears and mountain lions are going to do bear and mountain lion things,” he said. “Just the barnyard smell in itself attracts animals.”  

In McClure’s 18 years as a warden, he bets that he has trapped the same bear multiple times because sometimes a trap is set, and the bear decides to leave the area, since that free ride to a new home was not enjoyable the first time.  

McClure said residents need to be bear aware all the time.  

“There is no place void of bears. You have a potential of seeing one at any given time, and if bear spray makes you feel safe, then absolutely you should carry it,’ he said.  

One morning he ran across a Grizzly at the Charlo Post Office and chased it out of town. McClure said this is Montana, and that’s just life; bears are free-roaming.  

    A bear hangs out in the CSKT Bison Range on Thursday, June 25. Bears from this area can jump straight onto the bear highway, also known as Mission Creek, and head right into St. Ignatius. (Emily Messer/Leader)