Super Bear "Bubba" Stalking Nevada

A black bruin reputed to weigh about 700-lbs. in the Incline Village area of Nevada is said to have broken-in to some 50+ homes. Authorities say the bear is adept at avoiding traps and has been shot numerous times. In one instance, the shooter said the bullet bounced off the creature's head! The bear has scars from where it has been shot by a .44 and a .30/.30 as well as a gash across its neck.

All eyewitnesses agree the bruin (a male bear) is the largest they have ever seen. Residents have taken to calling him "Bubba," though not too affectionately. One woman recounted the story of how Bubba crashed through her son's garage while she was staying at the house alone, opened the refrigerator, and dined on what he pleased. Bubba would saunter away whenever wildlife authorities neared, but return after they left; he terrorized the poor woman for several hours - until 4 in the morning, she said!

Bubba is literally "smarter than the average bear" and has become habituated to humans, which makes him very dangerous. Bears who become familiarized with humans are more likely to attack. This is why the Fish and Wildlife authorities are trying to trap and kill Bubba, as opposed to the more common method of trapping and relocating. However, one authority admitted that relocation doesn't work anyway - the bears tend to migrate back to wherever they came from originally. Bubba has the garbage collection dates for certain neighborhoods memorized, as he tends to appear on those days.

Bears of this type grow to excessive sizes because they have learned to associate people with easy food supplies - yet another omen that Bubba could turn deadly. While no black bears have killed anyone in the area in over 100 years, Bubba is a contender for breaking the record, as bears with similar knowledge tend not to hibernate and be more aggressive.

His scat was described by one man whose garage Bubba broke not once but twice as "the size of a basketball."



© C Harris Lynn, 2010