Following the publication of a health assessment on the deceased animal by wildlife officials, the mystery surrounding an unusual bear assault in Arizona has grown more complex.
On June 16, in the Groom Creek region close to Prescott, a male black bear attacked 66-year-old Steven Jackson while he was drinking coffee and carried him 75 feet down an embankment, according to a Facebook post from the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office.
Officials in charge of wildlife said the death mauling was rare and “predatory in nature.”
The 365-pound animal underwent a necropsy, and officials determined its age to be between 7 and 10 years old, according to a news statement from the Arizona Game and Fish Department on June 21.
Dr. Anne Justice-Allen, a wildlife veterinarian who conducted the assessment, said that the bear was in “good condition with no apparent signs of disease.”
Wildlife officials reported finding seeds, plants, and human remains within the bear’s stomach. Additionally, its body fat indicated that it was in “good nutritional condition.”
Officials also reported that the bear’s rabies test was negative. According to Arizona Game & Fish, a bear last tested rabid in Arizona in 1971.
The study also established that the animal died as a result of several gunshot wounds. According to authorities, a neighbour who overheard Jackson crying shot the animal to death.
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