Almost a month after she attacked a mushroom forager in the mountains of Trentino while protecting her 8-month-old cubs, Daniza the bear is dead. She was captured by a task force of rangers that had been deployed to capture her, but she did not survive the anesthesia she was given.
After immense backlash from the public and animal rights groups, the province had ordered the group to catch but not kill Daniza, though they have now issued a statement to explain what happened. “In compliance with the order, last night conditions for an intervention were created, and the team attempted to put the bear to sleep. However, it did not survive.”
The team had been monitoring the mother bear and her cubs’ movements thanks to the radio collar she wore, reports local newspaper Corriere degli Alpi. Forest rangers set up cages around the woods and put meat and honey inside to lure her. Until now, she had avoided the cages, though it is unclear whether she was in one when she died.
Her cubs are still alive, however, and have been fitted with tracking devices so that rangers can monitor their moves from now on. An autopsy on the 19-year-old bear is scheduled for today.
Daniza and her cubs — Photo: Screenshot via Corriere della Sera