Pepper Spray Affirmed

Bear attacks Pepper spray has proven an effective deterrent against grizzly bears, a bear attack researcher said at a recent conference on bears in Colorado.

Stephen Herrero, author of “Grizzly Attacks: Their Causes and Avoidance,” said what little data he has is encouraging.

“Of 66 reported bear incidents, 16 involved grizzlies that came within 10 feet of the humans in which pepper spray was used,” Herrero said at the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee meeting.

“In all but one, the bear stopped, giving the humans a few seconds to sort out their options.”

In one-third of the cases, the bear kept coming, said Herrero, a professor of environmental science at the University of Calgary.

In three cases, the humans were injured by the bear.

But in the remaining cases, the pepper spray apparently was successful in deterring the attack.

Pepper spray manufacturers emphasize that the products are made to be used directly on an aggressive bear. Some people have incorrectly assumed that sprays work like insect repellents.

However, incidents in Alaska have indicated that spraying pepper spray around a tent or on the pontoons of a float plane may actually attract bears to come in and roll and chew on the pepper residue.