Yellowstone Bear World, the almost-finished drive-through wildlife park near Rexburg, lived up to its name when bears set foot on the property.
The bears made their appearance Wednesday, two days after park developer Mike Ferguson reached a deal with state wildlife officials allowing him to temporarily bring in the bears.The agreement enables Ferguson to avoid, for now, a state regulation banning the commercial importation of black bears. And it could pave the way for the park, a 60-acre parcel of land slated to host bears, bighorn sheep, elk and deer, to open in June, as park promoters had hoped.
Under the deal, Ferguson can bring in and display a group of bears owned by a professional trainer who raises the animals for use in movies and commercials, said Golden Linford, a state legislator from Rexburg.
The agreement skirts the bear ban through an exemption in state law that allows circuses and wild animal acts to pass through Idaho without a state permit for wildlife facilities, said Al Nicholson, chief of Fish and Game's enforcement bureau.