Posted on 12/19/2022 4:05:34 AM PST by marktwain
On May 22, 2022, visitors at Yellowstone national park witnessed a common, but seldom seen, killing of a young grizzly by a much larger adult boar. The mother of the young bear was also seen attacking the offspring. Some people think she was attempting to convince the young bear to leave the area.
The mortal wounding of the young bear, which was the size of an average human, (about 150 lbs) is brutal. The speed and power of the attack are sobering to watch.
Less than a month later, three more cubs were almost certainly killed by a large boar. On June 16, grizzly 793, known as “Blondie” likely had her three cubs killed by a big boar.
On Saturday morning, a bear thought to be Blondie was seen moving rapidly around an area in the park.
“The thought is that Blondie lost her cubs to a male bear on Friday night or early Saturday morning and was looking for them,” Bayles said on social media this week.
Bayles told one of his social media followers that a male bear was likely cause of the cubs’ demise.
“It is the single leading cause of baby bears,” Bayles said.
The study above was for grizzly bears, but black bears boars kill cubs with as much gusto. Black bear cub cannibalism bearbiology.org:
Abstract: From 1982 to 1985, 23 Arizona black bear (Ursus americanus) cubs were equipped with motion-sensitive, breakaway radiocollars while in winter dens.
(Excerpt) Read more at ammoland.com ...
I assume it’s the same as with lions. Horny boar bears won’t get laid as long as momma bears are lactating and caring for cubs.
The behavior makes sense from a genetic standpoint, but only up to a point. Given their large territories, 25% of cubs killed means these boars are probably often killing their own offspring?
From my reading, it is a mix of all of the above, with predation tops, then some benefit from females coming into estrus, and territorial mixed in.
Trying to get into a bears' minds to sort it all out is beyond human research.
I don’t think the boar bears care.
They just want to get laid.
Also, as the old bears age out, they will be challenged and possibly killed by a younger bear. Makes sense to take them out first.
Trying to get into a bears’ minds to sort it all out is beyond human research.
I think it boils down to 2 things in the boar’s mind, as stated just above.
1. Get laid
2. Take out future challengers
Yes. Bears are terrible as fathers. They do not protect cubs, they kill and eat them.
They kill and eat female bears a fair amount of the time as well. Just much harder for them to do that.
Bears will kill and eat anything they can overpower, when they are hungry (which is pretty common).
I get that the bears don’t understand or care that it’s their own cubs they kill. I just wonder if it’s a self-defeating behavior for long-term genetic success, that should eventually be selected against.
So I have to sign up for instagram to watch this? Sorry, nope.
ICBW, but I think the bears were doing just fine for a long time before humans decided to observe and record their life cycles.
For human children, the most dangerous words are “mommy’s new boyfriend”...
I am not signed up to instagram, and I watched it.
Yes and I for one am sick of the mother getting a pass 90% of the time when she choose the violent scum boyfriend.
Big boar bears kill (and often eat) about 25% of cubs and young bears every year.”
It’s likely, somehow, someway, caused by climate change. Just wait, someone will say that.
Already been done by those promoting polar bears as icons of "climate change".
Time of the month?
/s
***the most dangerous words are “mommy’s new boyfriend”...***
I was just thinking that. So many times we hear of it.
I like civilization where we have laws to protect the weak. Hopefully, we can turn around our current trajectory.
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