16 year old stranded on ice floe, shoots polar bear

[AZRedhawk44]

Can you imagine being on a floating ice berg with 3 polar bears... and a box of chocolate bars?

http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/723160--teenager-rescued-from-ice-floe-in-nunavut

CORAL HARBOUR, Nunavut – Battling hypothermia and freezing skin, a trapped teenage hunter was forced to shoot and kill a polar bear as he waited for more than a day to be rescued from a large chunk of drifting sea ice in the Canadian North.

The teen and his 67-year-old uncle, who had gone out polar bear hunting, were reported overdue late Saturday, said Ed Zebedee, director of the Government of Nunavut's protection services branch.

The snowmobile the pair were riding broke down approximately 18 kilometres from Coral Harbour, a tiny community on Nunavut's Southampton Island in the northern part of Hudson Bay.

As they walked towards the community to get help, they became separated. A large chunk of ice broke off, setting the teen adrift, said Zebedee.

The uncle was picked up Sunday morning. Searchers on snowmobiles located the man as he walked on the pack ice off the coast of the island.

His nephew, meanwhile, remained lost.

Sometime between Saturday and Sunday, the teen, who was armed with a rifle, encountered three bears, likely a female and two older cubs, on the same large ice pan.

One bear, likely the adult, simply got too close.

"He did have to shoot the polar bear to protect himself," said Zebedee. "There were two other bears on the ice pan but they stayed away from him so he didn't shoot at them at all."

The two cubs remained with the carcass and the teen managed to position himself as far away as he could from the remaining animals.

Jean-Pierre Sharp, an official with the Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre at Canadian Forces Base Trenton in Ontario, said an aerial search was launched Sunday morning.

A pilot on a small plane chartered by a government search-and-rescue agency spotted the teen Sunday afternoon and also saw the carcass of a bear down below.

Zebedee said the crew on board dropped a plastic container of chocolate bars and candy to the stranded boy.

A Hercules aircraft also spotted the boy Sunday, but lost sight of him as the plane circled back to take another look and darkness set in.

The crew continued to search for the teen through the night, dropping flares to illuminate the snowy landscape, but couldn't find him, Sharp said.

On Monday morning, the crew on board the military search-and-rescue aircraft again spotted the youth, who had drifted about 34 kilometres from where the snowmobile had broken down, said Sharp.

Two search-and-rescue technicians parachuted to a larger ice floe a short distance away to mount their rescue attempt.

"They had to sort of belly crawl across some of the ice floes to get to the one he was on," said Sharp. "Even after spending hours alone, huddling in temperatures that dipped below -15 C, the teen appeared to be in decent shape. He was conscious, slightly hypothermic and appeared to have some frostbite."

The military search-and-rescue experts dressed the boy in warm clothes.

The two remaining bears were still in the area when the rescuers arrived, Zebedee said.

"I was just told nobody wanted to be on the ice with the bears too long."

About an hour later, searchers who had launched a small boat from Coral Harbour located all three and took them to shore.

The 67-year-old man, identified by RCMP as Jimmy Nakoolak, and the 17-year-old boy, whose name was not released, were both taken to hospital in Churchill, Man., to be treated for hypothermia.

Zebedee, who has spent 30 years in the North, said the Inuit have a great deal of respect for polar bears and he doubts the teen hunter would have killed one if he had any other options.

[Viking]

Thumbs up for him for keeping his cool enough to make it a killing shot against the bear that got to close. Had he merely wounded it, I bet he wouldn't be alive now.

[Jamisjockey]

Two search-and-rescue technicians parachuted to a larger ice floe a short distance away to mount their rescue attempt.

 

[Hawkmoon]

Journalism 101 - FAIL

Always read what you wrote before you write any more. From the article:

The teen and his 67-year-old uncle, who had gone out polar bear hunting, were reported overdue late Saturday, said Ed Zebedee, director of the Government of Nunavut's protection services branch.

...

Zebedee, who has spent 30 years in the North, said the Inuit have a great deal of respect for polar bears and he doubts the teen hunter would have killed one if he had any other options.

So, like, why were they hunting polar bears if they didn't plan to, like, SHOOT a polar bear? Were they just going to take pictures? Maybe sheer the fur?

Occam's razor suggests that if they were hunting polar bears with a rifle, they probably intended to shoot a polar bear.

[AZRedhawk44]

Hawkmoon:

A bear on a detached ice floe or iceburg is kinda difficult to harvest after shooting.  The boy also didn't have his uncle with him to help him harvest the bear.

At the point that he was stranded on an ice floe... I bet his priorities shifted away from bear hunting to just getting back home.

It would be no different than one of us going griz hunting in Alaska with a guide, and getting separated from him.  While traipsing through the woods trying to find camp, you stumble across a griz and put him down for defensive purposes.  You're not equipped to harvest that animal... it was just self defense.  Had you seen him at 300 yards across a clearing, you would have passed on the shot since you had other priorities (food/shelter/safety).

[HankB]

Hawkmoon:

I doubt that the hunters intended to shoot a sow bear with cubs; they probably would have given it a wide berth, since they were probably looking for a boar.

Polar bears have no natural fear of humans, and regard anything besides other bears as meat; shooting this bear was more necessity than choice, even though they were hunting polar bears.

(Good thing they weren't out for a photo adventure.)

[Viking]

Hawkmoon:

I doubt that the hunters intended to shoot a sow bear with cubs; they probably would have given it a wide berth, since they were probably looking for a boar.

Polar bears have no natural fear of humans, and regard anything besides other bears as meat; shooting this bear was more necessity than choice, even though they were hunting polar bears.

(Good thing they weren't out for a photo adventure.)

Isn't it a law that says you've got to bring a large caliber rifle with you when you head out into polar bear country up in Canada? I seem to remember something about one of those guys doing survival shows on Discovery saying something to that effect. I think it's the law on the Svalbard islands. They even have rifles for you to borrow if you happened to forget your own .

[Perd Hapley]

I am become Global Warming, Destroyer of Polar Bears

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

hey even have rifles for you to borrow if you happened to forget your own


give the newbie a rifle with some claw marks and stains on the stock  keep em cautious

[Grandpa Shooter]

A bear on a detached ice floe or iceburg is kinda difficult to harvest after shooting.  The boy also didn't have his uncle with him to help him harvest the bear.

Above is part of Redhawks reply.  My question is, When did going out and killing some animal so you can cut it's head off, or eat the meat, become "harvesting?"  I think of mowing down the corn in your field, or picking your cotton when someone mentions harvesting.  Is it now more PC to change the name?

Red, you know me well enough to know I am not attacking you.  I have heard the phrase before but thought I could get an answer here.  So fire away you hunters.

[AZRedhawk44]

A bear on a detached ice floe or iceburg is kinda difficult to harvest after shooting.  The boy also didn't have his uncle with him to help him harvest the bear.

Above is part of Redhawks reply.  My question is, When did going out and killing some animal so you can cut it's head off, or eat the meat, become "harvesting?"  I think of mowing down the corn in your field, or picking your cotton when someone mentions harvesting.  Is it now more PC to change the name?

Red, you know me well enough to know I am not attacking you.  I have heard the phrase before but thought I could get an answer here.  So fire away you hunters.

From http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/harvest

Main Entry: harvest
Function: verb
Date: 15th century
transitive verb

1 a : to gather in (a crop) : reap b : to gather, catch, hunt, or kill (as salmon, oysters, or deer) for human use, sport, or population control c : to remove or extract (as living cells, tissues, or organs) from culture or from a living or recently deceased body especially for transplanting
2 a : to accumulate a store of <has now harvested this new generation's scholarly labors — M. J. Wiener> b : to win by achievement <the team harvested several awards>intransitive verb : to gather in a crop especially for food

I've heard it used in the hunting lexicon for as long as I've cared anything about hunting.

The boy in the story was described as an Inuit, and a respectful use of the bear's remains would ostensibly be a goal of his and his uncle's.  I think "harvest" is an appropriate term for their probable use of a bear, had their hunt gone more according to plan.

The definition above, interestingly enough, mentions "sport" as a legitimate categorization of "harvest."  I don't consider a safari hunter out for his Big Five in Africa to be "harvesting" any of those animals... but I guess that's why I don't get paid to write the dictionary.

[Grandpa Shooter]

Thanks Red,

I seem to remember it popping up back around 1994 when the anti's were making their move on all guns, especially handguns, and the hunting community was scrambling to distance themselves from trophy hunters or "gun enthusiasts" who were buying guns just for the fun or it, or out of a fear they would lose the right to own.  I may be wrong on the time frame, but I think I have it right. 

[AZRedhawk44]

I don't have an Oxford English Dictionary... but the OED should have a timeline of changes of implied meaning as word usage evolves.  It would confirm your theory, I think.

[stevelyn]

( Re: 16 year old stranded on ice floe, shoots polar bear )

He couldn't have. Globular warming melted all the ice and drowned the polar bears.

[longeyes]

Anyone care about the cubs?

[AZRedhawk44]

Anyone care about the cubs?

Sure... but I care about the human (the cub of MY species) more.

The story describes them as older cubs, so they were probably close to being weaned by momma anyways.  Sow black bears den with their young for the first winter, then kick them out of the den around the late summer or fall of the second year.  These sound to be at about that point, but I don't know if polar bears den with their young for a longer or shorter time frame.

[Gewehr98]

I've harvested more than my fair share of cottontails for the crock pot over the years. 

Just wanted to say "Welcome" to Longeyes here in The Round Table, too. 

[41magsnub]

It is a minor thing and I don't get too worked up over it, but calling hunting harvesting has always seemed a little creepy to me.

[longeyes]

Since I've been following icebears Knut and Flocke in Germany I've gotten soft.   

[KD5NRH]

A pilot on a small plane chartered by a government search-and-rescue agency spotted the teen Sunday afternoon and also saw the carcass of a bear down below.

Zebedee said the crew on board dropped a plastic container of chocolate bars and candy to the stranded boy.

A Hercules aircraft also spotted the boy Sunday, but lost sight of him as the plane circled back to take another look and darkness set in.

The crew continued to search for the teen through the night, dropping flares to illuminate the snowy landscape, but couldn't find him, Sharp said.

Hmmm...they dropped him some candy.  Maybe flares, an EPIRB, and a small camp stove would have been useful too.

[Perd Hapley]

Hmmm...they dropped him some candy.  Maybe flares, an EPIRB, and a small camp stove would have been useful too.

A small camp stove?  He just dropped a POLAR BEAR, for goodness sakes.   

[Gewehr98]

Yeah, them polar bears take some cookin'. 

[Matthew Carberry]

Hmmm...they dropped him some candy.  Maybe flares, an EPIRB, and a small camp stove would have been useful too.

Yeah, drop him candy in a box, then lose him again.

Hmmm, maybe we shoulda put a couple flares in with the candy, eh?

[gunsmith]

psssssst, hey little boy, want some candy?

Zebedee said the crew on board dropped a plastic container of chocolate bars and candy to the stranded boy.

EPIRB, is that some kind of location tracker or something? I was thinking a radio beacon or gps type thingy
woulda been a good thing to drop too.
Cubs, poor things, probably will be eaten by a boar bear or a shark.

[MicroBalrog]

Chocolate is not as silly as it sounds. Polar expeditions used to take it along, it's excellent when it's really, but really cold.