Media Resources : Bear release in Picayune Strand State Forest FAQs :

FAQs: Bear release in Picayune Strand State Forest

Updated Feb. 19, 2009

Contact: Patricia Behnke, 850-251-2130

Background

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) received a call from the Florida Highway Patrol on Tuesday, Feb. 3 at 10 p.m., reporting that a driver had hit a bear on the Florida Turnpike near U.S. 27 in Miami-Dade County. FWC officers found the bear a short time later hiding under some palmettos. 

• What did FWC officers do when they found the bear?
• What is the normal procedure for bears injured by vehicles?
• What was observed about the bear’s injuries once it arrived at the Outpost?
• What was the diagnosis by the veterinarian?
• What options were available?
• What option was chosen?
• Why did the FWC recommend this course of action?
• Why didn’t the FWC allow the veterinarian at the animal hospital to perform surgery?

What did FWC officers do when they found the bear?

FWC officers administered two chemical immobilization darts to the 200-pound bear.  After the tranquilizer took effect, they transported the animal to the Everglades Outpost in Florida City for observation and to safely hold the bear.

What is the normal procedure for bears injured by vehicles?

Typically, the FWC will observe a bear that has been struck by a vehicle to see if the animal is able to leave the road area and return to safe habitat on its own.  In this situation, however, it was determined that allowing the bear to stay in the area presented too great a risk to the bear, and to motorists.

What was observed about the bear’s injuries once it arrived at the Outpost?

The bear’s injuries appeared to be non-life-threatening, but the veterinarian requested further examination by Miami Veterinary Specialists.

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What was the diagnosis by the veterinarian?

Based on X-rays, it was determined the bear’s right leg was fractured, but it was a clean fracture, according to the veterinarian.

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What options were available?

The veterinarian could have implanted pins and plates through a surgical procedure, releasing the bear into the wild immediately afterwards. The bear could have been kept in captivity to heal, with or without the surgery. Or the final choice was to release the bear into the wild to heal on its own.

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What option was chosen?

The FWC’s wildlife veterinarian and wildlife biologists consulted with the veterinarian at Miami Veterinary Specialists and determined the best course of action would be to release the bear into the wild so it could heal its injuries on its own. FWC biologists released the bear into Picayune Strand State Forest, in Collier County, on Feb. 5.

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Why did the FWC recommend this course of action?

Based on the FWC’s experience with bears, it was determined this was the best course of action for the following reasons:

• Bears are incredibly resilient and normally are able to heal and survive vehicle collisions.  
• Wild bears taken into captivity for injury-rehabilitation risk further injury to themselves as they attempt to escape captivity (broken teeth and claws are common) or in their attempts to remove casts or other materials.  
• Wild bears that receive pins or other implements may not favor the injured area, and so have a high risk of re-injury or causing worse damage than if they were to lay-up and let the injury heal on its own.  
• Surgery on the fractured leg would provide an entry point for infection, which could slow or prevent healing.  
• Keeping bears in captivity, even for a short period, can cause the bear to learn to associate people with food, which can create human-bear conflicts once the bear is released. If a food-conditioned bear poses a threat to human safety, euthanasia is often the end result.

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Why didn’t the FWC allow the veterinarian at the animal hospital to perform surgery?

Wild bears that receive pins or other implements may not favor the injured area, and so put their full weight on the area, increasing the risk of re-injury or causing worse damage. In addition, the surgery creates an entry point for infection. A released wild bear can not be monitored, so if infection occurred, the healing process would be slowed or the bone might not heal at all.

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