Human Changes to Environment Could Be Behind Recent Fatal Bear Attacks

by Evey Weisblat, Arkansas Advocate
October 17, 2025

When a black bear attacked a man in Franklin County on Sept. 3, it seemed like a one-off tragedy. But a second fatal attack in Newton County, just four weeks later and about 80 miles west, has raised questions about whether the fatal attacks — the first in more than a century — are more than a coincidence.

Both attacks involved young, male black bears, who assaulted the victims apparently unprovoked. Testing revealed the bear involved in the first attack was malnourished and “not functioning normally,” according to the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. Spokesperson Keith Stevens said the AGFC is still waiting on test results for the bear involved in the second attack, but initial findings indicate the bear was “extremely healthy” with a belly full of natural foods.

AGFC is still searching for answers, having found no evidence of diseases like rabies or distemper that could explain the aggressive behavior. But leading conservation biologists consulted for this article say the attacks are likely related to widespread human changes that have created ecological disruption.

Neil Carter, an associate professor at University of Michigan, studies the relationship between wildlife, people and the environment. Carter said that, in the exceedingly rare case a black bear attacks a human, multiple factors are usually at play, such as the bear’s health and psychology, social interactions with other animals, changes to its environment and global climate shifts.

Because bears are “laser-focused” on finding food, small shifts in their environment that are related to large-scale climate disruptions — like human-induced climate change — can have a measurable effect on their behavior, Carter said. He explained that climate change creates longer-term stressors that alter a bear’s access to food and water.

“Climate change is a contributing force here, but whether or not that’s what drove one or two bears to do this, it’s virtually impossible to make that connection,” Carter said. “I would probably say instead that it’s probably not just one thing, it’s probably a series of things happening simultaneously.”

For example, La Niña climate oscillations are associated with drier years and less mast production — the fruit and nut trees that bears gorge on in the fall before hibernation — leading to increased human-bear conflicts. Carter said this resource scarcity can force bears to drastically expand their home ranges and wander into new, human-dominated areas.

“Our research is pointing to the idea that because climate change is prevalent and pervasive, that it’s not unreasonable to consider that small changes in where and how much food is available will have ramifications on where animals like bears are and how they interact … wherever that food goes, or doesn’t go, pushes them around quite a bit,” he said.

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Carter’s concerns about climate shifts are supported by current meteorological forecasts. A climate shift outlook released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in September indicated a high probability of La Niña conditions persisting through the fall. These conditions increase the chances of below-average precipitation across the Southern U.S., and align with the ongoing drought affecting much of the Ozark region.

Emily Puckett is an associate professor at the University of Memphis who studies bear migration patterns. She previously worked on the Missouri Black Bear Project, tracking the growing population of black bears coming into Missouri from Arkansas. Puckett emphasized that a bad season for mast crops could lead to this kind of unusual bear aggression, and that current data on mast production could provide additional insight into the attacks.

AGFC does not believe a lack of available natural food sources stemming from recent droughts is related to the attacks.

“There’s no indication of that,” Stephens said in an email. “Both bears had natural foods in their stomach, but only the Franklin County bear was malnourished.”

Stephens said there are “anecdotal observations indicating an average mast crop,” but AGFC could not immediately provide requested mast crop data to support this observation.

Human encroachment on bear territory

Human activities, such as development, new road construction and recreational land use, can also alter bear habitats and increase the likelihood of encounters with people. While human encroachment on wild areas drives away most other animals, bears stay behind, and are often rewarded for it with human scraps.

“A lot of animals can’t do that, but bears can,” Carter said. “So I think the answer is an unsatisfying ‘probably,’ it’s entirely possible these things are happening.”

Puckett noted how bear population recovery efforts have corresponded with accelerated human development over the past few decades.

“This has been a long-term effect of a decrease in human persecution [of black bears] that kind of stopped in the ‘60s and ‘70s, and we’ve seen these localized recoveries of populations not just of bears but of other mesocarnivores as well,” she said. “But at the same time, human development is coming into their habitat.”

A path forward

Stephens said AGFC is continuing to investigate the attacks. Both bears have been euthanized, although AGFC is still awaiting DNA results to confirm the second bear shot was the one that perpetrated the attack. Sam’s Throne Campground, where the second attack occurred, will remain closed until the match is confirmed, Newton County Sheriff Glenn Wheeler previously stated.

“We are committed to educating the public on respecting wild animals and viewing them from a safe distance,” Stephens said. “We are investigating both attacks in an attempt to identify what may have provoked the animals, but we may never know the answers to these questions.”

Carter emphasized it was impossible to determine the exact causes of the attacks without extensive research, which could take years. He suggested AGFC commission a research program to investigate whether shifts are being driven by factors like human development and climate change.

Puckett suggested people stay up to date with knowledge of how to effectively prevent bear attacks.

“Bears and humans do utilize very similar landscapes when they have the choice,” she said. “And so that’s why we have to be so cognizant of how our choices can create this situation for bears to get into conflict and do our part to minimize that.”

Arkansas Advocate is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Arkansas Advocate maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Sonny Albarado for questions: info@arkansasadvocate.com.