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<p>WEST WYOMING &#8212; Officials say &#8220;a perfect storm&#8221; of circumstances and conditions led to the <a href="https://www.timesleader.com/news/613471/death-of-bear-cubs-in-west-wyoming-deemed-suspicious" target="_blank">death of four bears earlier this month</a>.</p><p>Pennsylvania Game Commission officials said in a news release the ingestion of plant parts from a common ornamental shrub is the likely cause of death for a 300-pound female bear and her three cubs.</p><p>Wildlife conservation officers responded to a report of four bears found dead near the parking lot of St. Monica&#8217;s church on Dec. 6. The bears showed no signs of bullet wounds or other external trauma and were found dead in or around the same tree, according to officials.</p><p>Officials also said there was no evidence of thrashing or stumbling in the area around the bears, which suggested they died suddenly.</p><p>The corpses of the sow and one cub were transported to the Penn State Animal Diagnostic Laboratory in State College for post-mortem examination and toxicological testing.</p><p>An examination of the stomach contents of both bears revealed they recently ate leaves of an English yew plant.</p><p>Officials said the plant &#8212; native to Europe, Africa and southwest Asia &#8212; is widely cultivated in eastern North America as an ornamental shrub and often found in urban environments, including where the four bears were frequenting.</p><p>The plant also contains a compound called &#8220;taxine,&#8221; which officials said is highly toxic to most animals and humans if ingested.</p><p>&#8220;This is the first case of black bear deaths attributable to yew intoxication that I have heard of,&#8221; said Game Commission wildlife veterinarian Justin Brown in a news release.</p><p>Game Commission biologist Mark Ternent said in the news release that bear activity increases just before hibernation so the animals can accumulate fat that will last them through the winter.</p><p>He added the four bears were likely preparing for hibernation, and that bear cubs will follow the lead of their mother when foraging for food.</p><p>&#8220;Wildlife conservation officers and agency biologists encounter bears that have died from unusual causes every year, but this may be a first,&#8221; Ternent said. &#8220;This unfortunate occurrence was extremely rare and one we hope will not be repeated.&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">A photo submitted by the Pennsylvania Game Commission shows the corpses of four bears found dead in West Wyoming earlier this month.</div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/web1_Photo-1-1-7.jpg</photo0><caption0>A photo submitted by the Pennsylvania Game Commission shows the corpses of four bears found dead in West Wyoming earlier this month.</caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/web1_Photo-2-1-7.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">A photo submitted by the Pennsylvania Game Commission shows the English yew plant.</div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/web1_Photo-2-1-7.jpg</photo1><caption1>A photo submitted by the Pennsylvania Game Commission shows the English yew plant.</caption1><photoCredit1></photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Travis Kellar</p><p>tkellar@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Travis Kellar at 570-991-6389 or on Twitter @TLNews</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Officials: Bear, her three cubs died because they ate toxic plant