CHERRY POINT, Wash. – The carcass of a grizzly bear was found on a beach near Cherry Point in Whatcom County last week.

There’s no known grizzly population in Whatcom County and the surrounding region, so how it got here is a bit of a mystery.

Game Warden Dave Jones with the state Department of Fish and Wildlife has a theory.

“Based on the location where it was found and because I’m a trained observer, and the fact that it was found right next to the salt water, I’m going to guess it was brought here by the current from Canada,” said Jones. “That’s my guess. I have no facts on that. Time will tell when the biologists do some DNA work on it.”

He says he had trouble believing the report even as he was driving to check it out.

“I was really questioning who would absolutely go out of their way to call in something like this because I thought there was no way on this planet that this was going to be a grizzly bear,” said Jones. “I’ve never seen one around this area. I’ve never heard of one.”

He says there were no obvious signs of trauma, although vultures and other scavengers had damaged the carcass before it was found.

To listen to the full interview with Dave Jones, visit our Podcast page.