Bear cubs of mother euthanized after Yellowstone attack will go to Ohio zoo

The two female cubs would not survive on their own in the wild, officials say, and will be relocated to the Toledo zoo in the autumn

Reuters in Cleveland, Ohio

Friday 14 August 2015 18.10 BSTLast modified on Friday 14 August 201518.30 BST

Two female grizzly bear cubs orphaned after their mother was euthanized because she was linked to the fatal mauling of a hiker in Yellowstone national park will be moved to a zoo in Toledo, Ohio, zoo officials said on Friday.

The cubs, both less than a year old, were orphaned when their 259lb (117kg) mother was killed on Thursday after DNA testing proved she was involved in the death of hiker Lance Crosby, 63.

The 50-60lb (23-27kg) cubs cannot survive on their own in the wild and will be transferred to a captive facility first before arriving at the Toledo zoo in the fall, zoo officials said.

“Upon their arrival at the zoo, the cubs will undergo standard quarantine processes to ensure their health and wellness before going on exhibit for public viewing,” the zoo said in a statement.

Yellowstone’s announcement that it would kill the mother grizzly to ensure public safety unleashed a torrent of protests from wildlife advocates. Grizzly attacks are rare at the park, which last reported two separate deadly maulings in 2011 involving hikers, the first since 1986.

Randi Meyerson, assistant director of animal programs at the Toledo zoo, said workers will never share the same space as the bears. “Bears are dangerous animals and we don’t go in with them,” she said.

Crosby, a registered nurse from Billings, Montana, suffered wounds to his forearms and elsewhere in the attack by the mother bear and possibly her cubs. He had been reported missing by co-workers at a company that operates urgent care clinics in Yellowstone, which spans parts of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho.

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