Grizzly shot in Montana was the one that pulled woman from tent, DNA confirms

A grizzly bear that was shot and killed is the same one that yanked a California woman from her tent during a fatal attack — and DNA proves it, Montana wildlife officials said.

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks said Wednesday that DNA testing confirmed that the bear killed by wildlife officials on Friday was the same one that fatally attacked a camper.

“The DNA samples from the bear, saliva sample at the scene of the attack and samples from two chicken coops that were raided in the area all match up,” Fish, Wildlife and Parks officials said in a news release.

On July 6, Leah Davis Lokan, a 65-year-old from Chico, California, was camping near Ovando, a small rural town northwest of Helena, when she was attacked by the grizzly.

She and two other campers were woken up by a bear earlier in the night. They removed food from the area, secured their tents and went back to sleep.

Hours later, the couple in the group was startled by the sounds of a grizzly attack. The 400-pound bear had yanked Lokan from her tent, wildlife officials said.

The couple sprayed the grizzly with bear spray, and he wasn’t seen again before being found by wildlife officials after it entered a home, about 2 miles from the campsite. The grizzly had also raided a chicken coop.

“The Powell County Sheriff’s Office took a report from a resident who came home and found her door ripped off and large claw marks were present,” the sheriff’s office said on Facebook on Friday. “A short time later a male grizzly bear was killed in the area.”

Officials from the sheriff’s office and Fish, Wildlife and Parks said early indications were that it was likely the same bear. DNA testing confirmed it.

Bears have been increasingly wandering into new areas in Montana as the population grows, state wildlife officials said. The state is home to the largest grizzly population in the continental U.S.

The majority of bear encounters don’t involve any conflict, and bears are typically seeking a food source or protecting their young.

People recreating outdoors in bear territory should always carry bear spray and know how to use it, secure food, and keep a safe distance from any wildlife.

This story was originally published July 15, 2021 at 12:22 PM with the headline "Grizzly shot in Montana was the one that pulled woman from tent, DNA confirms."