Bear saves man in mountain lion attack
At least one man’s best friend is not his dog — it’s a wild bear that saved him from a mountain lion attack.
Thor, left, and Boo, denizens of the Detroit Zoo, recreate the epic bear/mountain lion scrap. (AP photo)
ParadisePost.com reports the unusual tale of Robert Biggs, 69, who was roaming the woods of north-central California Monday when the giant cat jumped him.
Biggs, a photographer who enjoys getting close to nature, but probably not this close, was initially saved by his backpack, which was “up around his head” and prevented the panther from landing a mortal blow.
After tussling with the panther for a few seconds, a bear appeared and battled the mountain lion for about 15 seconds, Biggs said, before the cat fled.
The bear left Biggs alone, and he suffered only relatively minor bites, bruises and bite marks.
Biggs told the Paradise, Calif., publication that he had been taking pictures of the bear and her cub before the mountain lion attacked him. He said he had taken pictures of the mother bear before, and had even played with an earlier cub.
Sounds like he owes momma bear a framed family portrait.
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78 comments Add your comment
Chris
March 29th, 2012
12:35 pm
Ever hear of Bart the Bear? How about Lynn Anderson up in Ely, MN? People do become friends with individual bears. This bear wasn’t a stranger to the photographer.
MeaneyMouse
March 29th, 2012
1:33 pm
HEYYYY YOU DANGED WOODCHUCKS STOP CHUCKING MY WOOD!!
HowardTheDuck
March 29th, 2012
1:56 pm
Am I the only one realizing that a panther and a mountain lion aren’t the same thing?
Mary
March 29th, 2012
3:05 pm
JREV your comment shows how uneducated you are about bears. Different species will react differently in different circumstances. You could learn a thing or two by going to bear.org and also watching the BBC Bear Family and me. http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/life/American_Black_Bear#p00cx4tf
Mary
March 29th, 2012
3:17 pm
If that was a black/brown bear… as a rule they are NOT carnivorous.
A human attack would be very rare.
Scott
March 29th, 2012
3:24 pm
Good posts. Maybe the bear felt some fondness toward the photographer merely because of the interaction with her and her cubs. Who knows. But in the end, the mountain lion was not welcomed by either party. Turned out good.
Hey “George Mathis”, I see a new tv sitcom coming, called, “Saved by the Bear”. you like?
Smokey the bear
March 29th, 2012
3:28 pm
And remember …..only you are stupid enough to go out n the wilds anyplace yourself in potential danger by messin with wild animals……pass it back this way…….
Scott
March 29th, 2012
3:28 pm
I was in the Smoky Mountains in 2008 and while on the Cade Cove trail a black bear walked by us about 12 feet away. He just looked at me and kept on walking. Not saying they are not aggressive but on this day, it wasn’t.
Laine
March 29th, 2012
3:42 pm
Black bear attacks on humans are very rare. You only find this hard to beleive because you don’t know the truth about black bears.There are so many misconceptions about these docile animals. I have been learning the truth about them the last 2+ years thanks to Dr. Lynn Rogers at the North American Bear Center in Ely, Mn. Before thinking you know what you’re talking about, get your facts straight. ~~ bear.org~~
One time
March 29th, 2012
4:18 pm
I was attacked by a humming bird and a pack of coyotes charged out of the woods and saved me. None of the local papers would even listen to my story…