— by Lin McNulty —
Black bear near Grove on Rosario. Photo: Jeff Morris
Undersheriff Brent Johnson echoes what seems to be the thought of many on the island. “It’s a cool concept,” he says of the Black Bear sightings on Orcas.
The recent arrival is believed to be the same bear that escaped capture by Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife on nearby Lummi Island. The department had attempted to lure the bear with donuts; apparently, this bear doesn’t like donuts and swam over to Orcas in search of other treats.
First spotted on Saturday on Saturday, May 27 on Point Lawrence Road, there have been reports since that our “bearfoot” visitor has been sighted on Bartel Road off North Beach, near Rosario and, most recently, on Vusario Road.
The Sheriff’s Office remains in contact with Fish & Wildlife experts and a trapper has been placed on standby, but no efforts have been made to trap the critter. The Sheriff’s Office and Fish & Wildlife are “trying to figure out what to do,” adds Undersheriff Johnson.
It is not believed that the bear poses any direct threat, other than raiding garbage cans and perhaps wandering the roadways in the dark. Johnson stressed that it is more likely a person would be attacked by a racoon than by a bear.
The Sheriff’s Office encourages anyone with a sighting to call 360-378-4151 to make a report.
Orcas Issues awaits that perfect photo of the bear while encouraging, of course, personal safety for all.
It was a long ago legend that the last bear to be shot on Orcas was by Ray (or maybe Ralph) Pinneo in his garden at West Sound in 1954. This was told to me about 1972-3 by the late Felix Bangs who came to the island as a boy in 1957.
I can imagine being alone on a strange island isn’t much fun. I do hope he/she returns home safely with no harm done on either side.
Bears are wild, not pets. Children (some disguised as adults) are roaming around Orcas Island. We should be mindful of their (bears) need for nature in how we implement urban/rurual development plans. That’s how we show respect for Bears and other wildlife, not by misplaced maternal instincts to domesticate or pretend wild animals to be cute and cuddly. Their beauty is self-evident. The only animals that suffer from human health afflictions are the ones we’ve domesticated and cross breaded (dogs and cats, etc). Have you ever seen an in-the-wild obese Cheetah or Gazelle? Think about it. They’re better off if we police ourselves, learn to control our population growth and thereby respect their need for space. It’s not my planet; it’s ours, in the broadest possible sense.
Let’s import a female mate so the two of them can become legal immigrants and settle here.They can then help the community by beginning to control the deer over population. No passport needed.