by Alex Brooks
While doing some spring plowing on his tractor last Thursday afternoon on his property in Grafton at the end of Stage Coach Road, Gunny Gundrum noticed that his beehives were knocked over and the gate of the enclosure around the beehives violently sprung open. [private]After finishing the plowing he returned to the house to park the tractor and returned on foot to see about putting the hives back together and repairing the gate, bringing his gun with him just in case. He had just secured the gate and was trying to put the hives back in order when he saw a large bear watching him. According to Gundrum, he and the bear stared at each other for a few moments, then the bear apparently decided he was going to go get his honey. He came over a small stone wall and advanced towards Gunny and the honey.
Gundrum stood his ground, aimed his gun, and when the bear was about 20 feet away from him, he shot it in the head. The bear tried to turn and run, but it stumbled, and a second shot killed it.
Gundrum estimated that the bear weighed between 250 and 300 pounds and, when it stood up, was over 5′ tall. He said he had a bear permit last year, but he didn’t renew it so he couldn’t keep the bear. He called the State Dept. of Environmental Conservation, and they came Friday morning to get the bear. They took it to a lab in Colonie to examine it and test it for scientific purposes. The DEC officials told Gundrum that he is well within his rights to kill a bear when it is threatening his property and his own safety.
Gundrum said there was not a great deal of damage to the beehives and the enclosure that protects them.
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