Andso,whathappensnext is framed
as an act of compassion,a rescuemis-
sion.A large bronze-colored trap is
placed about 30 feet fromher,with a
package of chokecherries deep inside,
at the endopposite the trapdoor.We
wait about a half hour, but the bear
doesn’t seem to notice, and a small
crowd of visitors begins to collect on
anearby stonebridge.OneofLeahy’s
rangers, invisible to us on the other
sideof themeadow,makesanoise that
startles the bear fromher reverie and,
asLeahyhoped,upa tree.Asonlookers
point and take selfieswithwhat likely
will appear tobeabrowndot clinging
to thebarkabout20 feet skyward,two
rangersmove thebear trap to thebase
of the tree.
Itdoesn’t take thebear long—maybe
15minutes—totireofhidingabovethe
fray.Thefoodsmell inthetrapoverrides
the fear that sent her up, so she creeps
down.Onceher large,roundedbackside
is all theway inside the trap, the gate
shuts.She screeches andwrithes des-
perately,andalthoughvisitorsgasp,they
understand thenecessityof thecapture
because a ranger was dispatched by
Leahy tokeep thematbayandexplain
whatwashappening.
Leahyandbiological science techni-
cianCameronGray each carry an end
of the trap through the parted crowd
to their truck, in something akin to an
ursineperpwalk.
“FYI,”Leahy says into his radio,
finally back to normal speaking level
after more than an hour of hushed
tones, “ValleyWildlife [the name of
Leahy’sbearsquad]willbeunavailable,
on a capture.”
“Copy that,ValleyWildlifeunavail-
able,”a voice crackles back.
We drive the bear to Wildlife
Management’s office and jabherwith
a syringe that’s filledwith sedativeand
attached
toa5-footpole.Hermeasure-
mentsare taken,bloodandhairsamples
aresenttoa labtotesthowmuchhuman
food she has consumed, and her body
is thoroughly checked for injuries and
abnormalities. A radio transmitter is
then attached to one of her ears. If the
transmitter indicates she is near devel-
oped areas again, or if people spot her,
theYosemite staff will deploy aversive
ABOVE: RYAN LEAHY, A LEADING LIGHT IN THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE’S EFFORTS TO SAVE
THEAMERICANBLACKBEAR; BELOW: RANGERSCOLLECTINGBLOODANDHAIRSAMPLESFROM
GREEN-7,WHICHWILLBEUSEDTODETERMINEHOWMUCHHUMANFOODSHE’SBEENEATING.
THEBEARWILL LATERBE FITTEDWITHARADIO TRANSMITTER.
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