Specialists In Castilla y León Save Life Of Brown Bear With Head Trapped In A Plastic Container

A brown bear that somehow managed to get its head stuck inside a plastic container was saved from certain death by a team of specialists in Castilla y León.

As detailed in a statement released by the Junta de Castilla y León, a resident of the town of Anllares del Sil spotted the stricken animal in trouble at around 8:45 am on Wednesday, September 13.

The individual initially reported the sighting to the staff of the Fundación Oso Pardo, with the foundation subsequently referring the matter to the specialised staff of the Junta de Castilla y León.

Teams were deployed to the location

They immediately deployed environmental agents and a team from the Bear Patrols of the Natural Heritage Foundation of Castilla y León to the reported location.

Also dispatched to the scene were clinical veterinarians belonging to the network of wildlife centres of the Junta de Castilla y León. These animal medical experts are assigned to the government’s plan for the capture and radio-marking of brown bears in the Community.

On arrival, the specialists located the bear and verified that its head was trapped in a plastic drum of some sort. This obviously prevented it from being able to see and gave it no possibility of feeding, compromising the life of the creature as a result.

🐻 La @jcyl consigue salvar la vida de un oso pardo con la cabeza atrapada en un bidón de plástico en la localidad de Anllares del Sil, #LeónESP

👉 Le impedía la visión y la posibilidad de alimentarse, comprometiendo la vida del ejemplarhttps://t.co/YWZMRipTVj pic.twitter.com/x5L0P58Tih

— Naturaleza Castilla y León (@naturalezacyl) September 14, 2023

The bear was sedated with an anaesthetic dart

After a rapid assessment of the situation, at 9:54 am, the veterinary team fired an anaesthetic dart at the bear. Around 12 minutes later, the creature was in a deep sleep.

He was found to be a brown male bear weighing 98.5 kg, and showing no specific signs of dehydration. The team members immediately proceeded to remove the drum from its head.

Once they had removed it, while he was still unconscious, a collar was placed on the animal to allow it to be geolocated in the future.

The procedure ended with the specialists taking the bear’s biometric measurements and biological samples before it woke up again, at which point it was released back unharmed into the wild.