Since 1980, sixty-three grizzlies have been hit by trains and killed along a section of railroad near Glacier National Park, Montana in the United States, according to reports from state and federal wildlife agencies. The worst year on record was 2019, when eight grizzlies were killed by trains, and three have been killed so far this year.
Note: The grizzly bear is a common name for a brown bear belonging to the subspecies Ursus arctos horribilis.
Retired federal ecologist Chuck Neal of Cody told Cowboy State Daily that many of these bears likely died because they got drunk!
Grain spilled from railcars along the tracks are a tempting treat for bears. With enough moisture from snow and rain, “the spilled grain actually ferments in place and becomes a de facto brewery”, he explained.
Bears that become attracted to the fermented grain “might fall asleep right on site if they get drunk first. They can, and have, fallen asleep in a drunken stupor right on the tracks”, Neal said.
“Other times they loiter on the tracks until a train approaches, at high speed, then drunkenly attempt to outrun the train – no can do – and are smashed”, he added.
Mortalities from train collisions are also a major issue in many Canadian parks, sometimes representing the main source of mortality.
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