Mother and daughter’s bodies were found mauled in Canadian wilderness, then DNA testing revealed the four animals responsible for their deaths
The tragedy came a year after a separate bear attack in the same area.
A mother and daughter in British Columbia, Canada, died earlier this month in what authorities believed was a grizzly bear attack. Wildlife officials have since located the four grizzly bears involved in the women’s deaths, ultimately euthanizing them out of concern for public safety, as per provincial guidelines for responding to human-wildlife conflicts.
48-year-old Jennifer Balcarras and her 20-year-old daughter Selah Reed were reported missing on Sunday, Nov. 1, when they failed to return from an afternoon trail walk in Bella Coola, a community 620 miles northwest of Vancouver. Authorities later discovered the women’s bodies 492 feet away from each other, with Balcarras’s body reportedly located along the Snooka West Trail on Monday, Nov. 2, according to People. Reed’s body was found the next day in a bear cache, where bears store their food, per CBS News.
The British Columbia Conservation Officer Service (BCCOS) said in a statement on Tuesday, Nov. 10, that DNA evidence linked the attack to four grizzly bears—a female and her three cubs. More than a dozen conservation officers mobilized in rotation in the past week to successfully capture the bears in “difficult terrain and weather.”
Authorities say deaths from grizzly predatory behavior are rare
During the investigation, Nuxalk Nation, Bella Coola’s local government, implemented a voluntary curfew. Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) were deployed to the region to help conservation officers conduct night patrols and safely escort residents in the meantime. The curfew was eventually lifted following the euthanizing of the bears.
Based on the circumstances and evidence from the fatal mauling, authorities determined that the attack on the mother and daughter was an uncommon tragedy. The bears also cannot be rehabilitated or relocated due to the risks they pose to public safety.
“Our investigation also found that this attack likely involved predatory behavior, which I can tell you is very rare,” Inspector Jeff Tyre said during an online briefing. “That is to say, we don’t know how it started, but we know how it ended.”
Tyre clarified that the mama bear and her cubs were not involved in the grizzly attack on 20 elementary teachers and students that took place in Bella Coola in November of the previous year. In that incident, 11 people were injured, including two who suffered critical injuries.
“This was a heartbreaking event for the families, the Nuxalk Nation and the Bella Coola community. We hope the efforts of everyone who responded, along with these findings, bring some measure of closure,” Tyre said. “Our thoughts remain with everyone affected. We ask that the families’ privacy be respected, in keeping with their wishes.”
While the investigation has officially been closed, BCCOS plans to further examine the response and the circumstances that led to the tragedy. Nuxalk Nation’s elected chief councilor, Tlhmtimut Samuel Schooner, said community support services would remain available to residents.
Have a tip we should know? [email protected]
Follow The Mary Sue:
