Bear Mauling Prevented By Quick-Thinking Unarmed Birder Family

A bear mauling was stopped cold on Sunday by a quick-thinking wildlife biologist out for a stroll on Kasilof River Beach, Alaska on the Kenai Peninsula. Armed only with a camera and tripod, 48-year-old wildlife biologist Toby Burke displayed incredible courage in facing up to a bear that charged his family.

He was there with his wife Laura and three children including 7-month-old baby Camille who was strapped securely to Laura’s back.

If you’ve ever been to the Kenai, then you already know that the brown bear population there is notable for its impressive size. And they don’t look any smaller when they’re running straight at you looking for their first meal after several months of winter hibernation.

It may be hiker’s legend, but I’ve always heard that if you have a group of six, then a bear won’t attack. However, with only five along for the Burke family stroll — one of them a baby in a pack — the hungry bear apparently decided to take the chance.

Toby Burke had previously spotted the bear at a distance when it appeared to be stalking a dune buggy. The buggy vanished and so did the bear, but he said that he didn’t like the way it was acting.

“The bear in the dunes was acting really erratic. Like it was deranged…And I even said to my wife, ‘That looks like a candidate to be destroyed or shot,'” he told a reporter in Alaska.

Of course, the family decided to head back to their van. But with the dune buggy gone, the bear apparently circled back to target the family. It suddenly popped up very close.

The Burkes huddled together and tried to make a lot of noise to frighten her off, but she kept coming.

As a trained biologist with the US Fish and Wildlife Service, Toby Burke knew that he couldn’t play dead and hope that the bear would get bored. She would simply turn to attacking his family instead.

So he continued to fight back with his tripod. Realizing that she was no much for an angry birder, the bear finally took off.

In the chill late April weather, Burke was still wearing heavy clothing, so he ultimately came away from the battle with just a few scratches. Nobody else in his family was touched.

Now you may criticize the guy for birding in the Kenai without a firearm. But, hey, I’ve done the same thing. A lot of people do. You have only two hands, and you need to be able to use your binoculars and your camera if you want to actually get any birds identified.

And a normal bear simply wouldn’t have attacked a healthy, screaming group of that size.

The Burke family reported the matter to 911 because they had seen other people walking in the direction that the bear was going. Alaska State Troopers investigated.

They had already received a different report of an aggressive bear, possibly the same animal, so they were on high alert.

When they approached the dangerous bear, she charged the officer. Never a good idea. The officers shot and killed her.

Based on her worn teeth, she was about ten years old and desperate to feed on someone, anyone.

The Burke family’s courage and the quick response of the officers almost certainly prevented another bear mauling tragedy.

[brown bear photo by Malene Thyssen via Wikipedia Commons]