A rare female brown bear known
to scientists as Gemma, who worked herself free of a radio
tracking device more than two weeks ago, was sighted Friday,
calming fears that the animal had been injured or worse.
Gemma has become a popular symbol for Italy's National Park
of Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise, and was spotted in the countryside
near the town of Scanno.
The tracking device has allowed park naturalists to study
the rare Marsican bear and also try to prevent her from coming
into contact with humans, including residents in villages inside
the park.
By analyzing DNA samples from hair left in a chicken coop,
they were confident that Gemma is in "excellent" health and had
likely only yanked off her radio collar.
Many people feared the worst when her radio collar was
found.
One year earlier in the park, authorities said that another
brown bear was "brutally murdered," likely by several poachers
in the national park who shot the animal "execution style" with
numerous bullets to its head from different weapons.
Park authorities said then that it was important to catch
the culprits, to protect a national park's reputation and
preserve its wildlife.
National park President Antonio Carrara said he had not
been too worried about Gemma.
"From the beginning, despite the legitimate concerns, we
were convinced that the Gemma the bear had not been a victim of
poachers or reckless (behavior)," he said.
He also dismissed fears raised about their welfare
following a petition from residents of Scanno who say the bears,
including Gemma, have lost their fear of humans and venture too
close to the village.
"On the contrary, it was found that ...great attention was
paid to the fate of the bear," he said.
Park rangers will try to capture Gemma in the coming days
to refit her with a new radio collar.
The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has urged the Italian
government to take action to protect the Marsican brown bear,
also known as the Apennine brown bear, an animal the WWF says is
in grave danger of extinction.
The numbers have been reduced to about 48 because of
poachers, accidents with vehicles, and poisonings.
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