Part of a five-day hunt for a mother black bear and one of her cubs ended Thursday near Oakmont County Club.
The year-old cub was found dead along the Pennsylvania Turnpike in the morning, and the mother was shot with a tranquilizer dart in the afternoon. Another cub was still on the loose.
The bears were first spotted Saturday near Unity Trestle Road in Plum and apparently followed the railroad bed to Oakmont, state Wildlife Conservation Officer Beth Anne Fife said. She said the bears were seen Wednesday night at Oakmont East golf course, snapping flags and taking cups out of holes.
About 6:20 a.m. yesterday, motorists called about a dead "bear-like animal" along the turnpike near the Allegheny River Bridge, Turnpike Commission spokesman Carl DeFebo said. The cub apparently had been struck by a vehicle but state police said no such incident had been reported.
Maintenance workers said a bear watched as they removed the dead cub, which weighed about 125 pounds.
State police said two bears were reported heading toward the country club around 8 a.m. Conservation officers set up two traps between the golf course and turnpike. Before long, the 200-pound mother bear found the doughnuts, cakes and pies used as bait.
Fife said the bear climbed head-first into the trap, shaped like an oil drum on its side. When a bear pulls down on a basket to get the treats, the door shuts. However, mother bear's rear end was still outside and she managed to escape.
Fife decided her only recourse was to tranquilize the bear.
"Between the golfers and the turnpike, something was going to happen and it wasn't going to benefit her," Fife said. Golfers continued playing, unaware of the hunt.
Fife said she and the bear seemed to be playing a game a freeze tag as she tried for about an hour to get into position for her one shot. The bear would stop, Fife would stop and then the bear would move on.
"I felt like Elmer Fudd," Fife said.
Fife finally got a clear shot, and the bear collapsed into a ravine. Golf course workers loaded the animal onto a beach chair and into the trap.
Fife said the bear was tagged in Armstrong County in 2001 after being caught destroying cherry trees.
"This is her second strike. She's out," Fife said. Game officials said the bear will be released in woods "far, far away."
Fife is confident of capturing the other cub.
"The mom's scent is here," Fife said. "I'll keep checking the trap. We'll just play the game."
