GLADSTONE — Officials found a dead bear carcass on a local trail. Officials believe it was likely killed by another bear.

On Wednesday, July 31, a member of the public found a deceased bear at the Days River Pathway on Loop 2.

DNR was notified and came to retrieve the carcass the same day.

DNR Wildlife Technician Colter Lubben said his office determined that the bear was killed by another animal.

“We went out right away and we were able to retrieve that animal and we did skin it out just recently,” Lubben said.

Many speculated what could have killed the bear, some thought it could have been a fallen tree or perhaps some sort of disease.

“It was definitely killed by another animal, it did not fall from a tree, it didn’t die from any sort of sickness,” Lubben said.

Lubben could not definitively say what kind of animal killed the bear, but he did say the guilty party could be another bear.

“Based on our findings and the fact that the animal was not eaten at all, it was just killed, it likely was another bear,” he said.

He added that based on the bruising and puncture wounds on the back of the bear’s neck led them to believe it was another animal. He said he thought it could be a bear because it had not been eaten.

He said that wolves or coyotes would have likely eaten parts of the bear rather than leave it, but it’s possible the predator(s) got spooked before they could consume the dead flesh.

The bear weighed roughly 60 pounds, indicating it was a yearling likely born in the winter of 2023.

Lubben said that the carcass is now frozen and is being sent to a lab in Lansing for further examination.

DNR plans to send the carcass downstate at the beginning of next week where it could take the lab one to two weeks to present its findings.