The remains of the grizzly bear’s carcass were discovered on September 4 by a hiker near the Burgess Pass trail near Field, British Columbia.
According to the autopsy report, the bear had suffered fatal injuries to the neck and under the paws. The injuries are likely due to the strong, pointed horns the mountain goat uses to defend itself.
– Grizzlies attacking mountain goats are relatively common. But this is the first case that my colleague and I have ever seen, says wildlife ecologist David Laskin The Guardian. He works for Parks Canada.
horns 30 centimeters long
Mountain goats in this mountainous area can weigh up to 70 kilograms, and the black horns can reach almost 30 centimeters in length.
– The defensive reaction of a mountain goat will be to protect itself by using its sharp horns, he notes.
Large goats sometimes graze in the same areas where grizzly bears roam. It is therefore not uncommon to have skirmishes where one of the animals must pay with his life if there is a fight.
– Bears put themselves in danger
As a rule, the bear emerges victorious from the battle. It usually attacks from behind by biting the prey’s neck and shoulders.
But this time the mountain goat wanted it differently.
– Bears put themselves in danger when attacking large ungulates like moose and goats. It’s definitely a reminder that nature is full of surprisestells David Laskin to the newspaper.
The grizzly is a subspecies of brown bear that lives in North America. It can weigh up to 500 kilograms and measure 250 centimeters in length, according to the report Great Norwegian Encyclopedia. In males, the claws are up to 15 centimeters long. The grizzly has a strong hump on its back.