A woman was bitten by what investigators believe to be a bear while camping last week in Beehive Basin just northwest of Big Sky, Montana. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks was notified of the incident on Friday. According to the victim, she and another person were camping on private land near the Beehive Basin trailhead when they were awakened early Thursday morning by a large animal pushing or “falling” on their tent. The two campers kicked and yelled at the animal to scare it away, and it bit one of them on the leg from outside the tent, then left the campsite. The campers did not see the animal. Fortunately, the victim’s injuries were relatively minor, and she sought prompt medical treatment. FWP believes it was a bear that bit the woman, based on her account of the animal’s behavior and the nature of the bite wound. However, no bear tracks have been found near the trailhead to confirm whether it was a grizzly or a black bear, but the bite wound indicated it was from an adult-age bear. Biologists believe the bear was in the area out of curiosity and not as a predator. FWP will be monitoring the area closely with other agencies for potentially hazardous bear behavior.
