The Latest: Timeline of search for killer bear uncertain

HELENA, Mont. – The Latest on a fatal grizzly bear mauling near Glacier National Park (all times local):

3:50 p.m.

A Montana wildlife official says there is no way to know whether a bear that killed a mountain biker is still in the area of the attack near Glacier National Park.

John Fraley of Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks said Thursday officials will decide “one day at a time” how long the search will go on for the bear that mauled 38-year-old Brad Treat of West Glacier.

The agency’s six-person wildlife response team is relying on traps and wilderness cameras, while a helicopter flown in the search earlier will be used sparingly because of the expense.

Fraley says wildlife officials won’t know until next week whether the samples they collected at the site of the attack will contain usable DNA. If a bear is trapped, wildlife officials would have to hold it until then.

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8:25 a.m.

Montana authorities say a helicopter will help search for a grizzly bear that attacked and killed a 38-year-old mountain biker as he rode along a trail just south of Glacier National Park.

Fish, Wildlife and Parks spokesman Ron Aasheim said Thursday that the area is dense with grizzly bears and it may be difficult to find the one that killed Brad Treat, who was a law enforcement officer with the U.S. Forest Service.

Flathead County Sheriff Chuck Curry says Treat and another rider were in the Halfmoon Lakes area of the Flathead National Forest on Wednesday afternoon when they apparently surprised the bear.

It knocked Treat off his bike. The second rider was able to escape and get help and wasn’t injured.