Bear rescued after being trapped in orchard in Sichuan

CHENGDU -- A brown bear had been rescued and released after sneaking into an orchard to eat apples in a village in Southwest China's Sichuan province, the local forestry and grassland bureau said Thursday.

The Forestry and Grassland Bureau of Daofu County, Tibetan autonomous prefecture of Garze, was alerted by a local police station at around 10 am on Wednesday that a villager had found a bear stuck in a fence in his orchard.

The bureau immediately dispatched personnel of wildlife protection departments and the local forest public security bureau to the site to rescue the bear.

"It was around 9 in the morning, and I heard a growl when I was going to the toilet. I looked around and saw a bear in my orchard, which must have been about 200 kg, so I rushed to call for help," said Padain Drongtse, a villager of Benglong village.

The bureau said technicians used an anesthetic to immobilize the bear, cut the fence and checked if the bear's foot was injured. After confirming the bear was unharmed, they returned the bear to the forest. Three hours later, it woke up and disappeared into the woods.

Wang Zhijing, an official of the bureau, said low temperatures recently hit the county and the bear was likely looking for extra food in preparation for hibernation.

"Our on-site rescue efforts are a means of both protecting wildlife and enhancing local villagers' awareness of our work," Wang said.