Enos Mills who lived about the same time reported a similar account of grizzly intelligence. The trapper led an old cow that had been donated as grizzly bait into a V-shaped valley whose banks were supposed to guide the bear to the bait. The cow was tethered and around her were three spring guns, each pointing to one of the three routes the bear could take. The trapper also set four heavy bear traps around the cow. The first night the bear did not show but the second morning the tracks in the snow showed what had happened. The grizzly had stopped about 2ft from the silk line and then followed it to find the end. He finally leaped the line which was unheard of. The bear avoided the traps on his way to the cow, killed it and ate. Then he dragged what was left of the cow over two traps and sprung them. He then leaped back over the line and left.

To get the bear the following night the trapper set a heavy trap where the bear had leaped over the line the night before. To be sure the trapper also set up a forth gun with the line across the bear's path. The grizzly returned but must have noticed the trap and cleared the line at a different place. He fed and after he buried what was left of the carcass he left by a different route that brought him close to the fourth gun. He noticed the fishing line again and followed it to the gun and walked around it!

The trapper did not like being outsmarted by a bear and started building a log pen around the remaining bait using a giant boulder as the back. At the entrance of the pen he set two traps, one inside and one outside. The spring guns were still in position.

The grizzly returned the follow night and leaped as usually over the sting. The bear obviously noticed something fishy at the entrance to the pen because he climbed on top of the boulder reached down into the pen and drug up the remaining meat. The bear accidentally knocked off a pole from the pen that fell on the sting and triggered the gun. Luckily the gun was not aimed at the top of the boulder. Mills and the trapper reconstructed that the bear left his meal and walked over to the smoking gun to inspect it. Then he went back to the meat and pulled it from the boulder to the ground where he finished the meal. Finally the bear left by walking over the string that had earlier triggered the gun.

The world's smallest species of bear, the sun bear, Helarctos malayanus, has been newly classed as Vulnerable.

These elusive bears live in the dry or wet forests of  India, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh. They feed on insects and fruit.

Sloth bears' nostrils can close, protecting the animals from dust or insects when raiding termite nests or bee hives. A gap in their teeth enables them to suck up ants, termites, and other insects.

The North American Black Bear is the only species of bear that is not threatened.

Kenny a European brown bear was born 1-29-1992 in the zoo in Ljubljana. The zoo did  not have space for him and he was supposed to be put to sleep. But the “Verein zum Schutz und zur Erhaltung von Braunbären in Österreich” initiated the Kenny Project.  

Kenny’s habitat is 5750 m². 5000 m² are natural forest. The other part consists of a swimming pool, several caves, a hunting stand and uniquely a bear-people house. Martina Sommeregger PhD, Kenny’s caregiver and project leader lives with her two daughters in this house and Kenny has free access to part of it.

In June 2009 we were able to visit Kenny. Ms Sommeregger gave us a private tour. Kenny is very beautiful and gentle. I didn’t even feel his teeth when I was feeding him treats!

Andean Bears live in  western Venezuela through the Andes in Columbia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia, and ending in Northern Argentina. They are agile climbers, and                      also very good swimmers. The Andean Bear is comparatively thin, with a shorter nose similar to a dog.

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Ben Kilham is an expert in Black Bear behavior. Visit his web site.