Bear Events in the Kantishna / Wonder Lake Area of Denali in Summer 2020

Abstract

The summer of 2020 in Denali National Park and Preserve presented the Wildlife Management team with many challenges, not the least of which was a bear or bears that broke into and damaged properties in numerous locations in the Kantishna and Wonder Lake areas of the park.

The first indications of a problem were detected in mid-May when the road maintenance crew was preparing the road for spring road opening. Bear-caused damage and evidence that a bear had consumed large amounts of human and animal food was found at numerous of properties, both NPS and private. The initial response was to catch and collar the bear and release it on site. As further damage was assessed, it became apparent that the bear would not likely respond to our management strategy due to the extent of food reward it had acquired. For about 3 weeks in the spring, NPS Wildlife Management staff attempted to catch the bear without success.

It appeared the bear had eventually left the area and trapping efforts were discontinued. There were no further bear incidents in the area over the summer. In the fall, break-ins were reported once again, indicating that the offending bear had returned. Trapping efforts resumed and later in September a large male bear was trapped and euthanized. In the full report, we explain the detailed timeline of events for two time periods – spring and fall. We discuss what we learned as this situation progressed and provide suggestions to avoid a similar situation in the future.

Read the full report