Grizzly bear killed near Whitefish
A grizzly bear walks down the Inside North Fork Road in Glacier National Park. (Hungry Horse News file photo)
Officials are investigating the shooting death of a grizzly bear found west of Whitefish.
Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are seeking information on the death of a boar grizzly bear found by recreationalists in the Stillwater River downstream of the Farm to Market Road Bridge.
Officials retrieved the carcass from the river on Sunday, May 28. Investigators believe that the grizzly bear carcass was dumped from the Farm to Market Road Bridge into the Stillwater River sometime between May 25 and May 28.
State and federal wildlife officials are asking for anyone with information on this case, or anyone who may have seen anything suspicious in the area of the Farm to Market Road Bridge between May 25 and May 28, to call the Service Special Agent at 406-329-3000 or 1-800-TIP-MONT.
Callers do not have to identify themselves and a reward of up to $2,000 may be available for information leading to a conviction.
Grizzly bears are a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act.
This is the second grizzly bear death in two weeks in Montana.
Wildlife officials are also investigating the death of a grizzly bear east of Missoula near Bonner. A black-bear hunter reportedly killed the bear on May 16.