Chickens, Bears and Humans Trying to Live Together ⇒

{% blockquote -Felicity Barringer http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/07/us/bears-taste-for-chicken-sets-up-collision-course.html The New York Times %} In northwestern Montana, as in much of the country, more people are keeping chickens. And bears of all kinds are developing a taste for poultry that lures them into populated areas, presenting a dangerous situation for both people and, especially, for bears.

“You have a clash of cultures where there are increasing numbers of bears and increasing numbers of people,” said Chris Servheen, the grizzly bear recovery coordinator in the Missoula office of the federal Fish and Wildlife Service. “Bears that are habituated and food-conditioned don’t have much of a future.” {% endblockquote %}

Loved this story in today’s Times. People all across the country are raising chickens to save money on eggs. The real victims of this development, it turns out, are the bears.