It's been a while since I saw a bear

It’s been a while since I saw a bear in my neighborhood.

We had them in our yard once in Bozeman as evidenced by the scat they left. I have a wonderful photo of a black bear running full tilt through the cemetery behind my daughter’s house in Livingston. I used to have to shoo them off the porch of my cabin in Cooke City.

But once Barb and I moved to Malta I pretty much gave up hope of seeing any more bears near where I live. After all, we’re miles from the mountains on the tree-less prairie, and even though locals fear radical environmentalists will reintroduce grizzly bears to the prairie, it’s yet to happen. They remain as scarce up here as moderate environmentalists.

Another species of bruin, however, made a showing recently in the area. Sightings and tracks near Malta of what appears to be a black bear have been reported to the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks.

It’s not far-fetched. There are black bears in the Little Rocky Mountains 40 miles south of town, and I’ve certainly wandered that far before in search of a meal and a comfortable place to sleep.

We’ve been seeing more moose in this part of the state for quite a few years now, but until last month, no bears. I would guess that this one is tucked into a haystack where it will doze until either the advent of spring or a hired hand feeding cows awakens it.

As much as I would like to have bears in the neighborhood, chances of that one staying around are slim. Post-hibernation, I suspect that bruin will be high-tailing it back to the mountains. If not, somebody will shoot it.

There have also been rumored sightings recently of either a black wolf or a German shepherd in the area. Wolves, of course, are the end result of radical environmentalism. A loose shepherd, on the other hand, is simply the case of an irresponsible dog owner. Ultimately, they both get shot.

As much as I’d like to see a bear again, I doubt this will be the one. There’s a far better chance to run into a bear in the mountains than on the open prairie where from a distance it would look like just one more black cow.

I’ll keep my eyes open, though. That’s the great thing about a bear in the neighborhood. They make you pay attention.

Parker Heinlein is at [email protected]