Mom and daughter were slaughtered by grizzly mama bear and her three cubs while on Canadian trail, DNA confirms

DAILYMAIL.COM • 1h ago

By WILKO MARTÍNEZ-CACHERO, US REPORTER 00:34 12 Nov 2026, updated 14:23 12 Nov 2026

A Canadian mother and daughter were killed by a female grizzly bear and her three cubs while on a nature trail, according to DNA findings.

Forensic tests conclusively linked the four bears to the deaths of Jenny Balcarras, 48, and her 20-year-old daughter, Selah Reed, the British Columbia Conservation Officer Service said Tuesday.

Balcarras and Reed were found roughly 490 feet apart near a trail outside Bella Coola, which is about 620 miles north of Vancouver, last week.

Authorities said conservation officers killed all four bears to ‘protect public safety’ after considering the evidence.

The investigation conducted by the service found that the ‘rare’ deadly encounter with the bears ‘likely involved predatory behavior.’ More details were not provided.

Balcarras was reported missing by her family after going out in the Snooka West Trail area on Saturday, October 31, and missing a routine night call with her sister.

Her remains were found first on November 2, followed by Reed’s in a bear cache, where the creatures store food, one day later.

The DNA testing also determined that the four bears were not involved in a separate grizzly attack on a group of approximately 20 elementary school students and teachers in the same area last November. That attack injured 11 people, including two critically.

Balcarras’s brother, Josh Balcarras, said the pair knew the trail and were on a ‘casual walk.’

‘It’s surreal,’ he told CBC News. ‘It doesn’t seem real. It feels like a dream.’

Inspector Jeff Tyre described the deadly attack and its predatory nature as ‘very rare.’

‘We don’t know how it started, but we know how it ended,’ Tyre told reporters in an online briefing on Tuesday.

Tyre said the complex investigation for the ‘heartbreaking event’ had required more than one dozen conservation officers.

He said the officers worked in ‘difficult terrain and weather while carefully managing ongoing risk to the public and officer safety.’

All trapping equipment used in the response to the deadly attack has been removed and the investigation has now finished.

Authorities emphasized that fatal grizzly bear attacks involving predatory behavior were ‘rare’ but said the risk could be reduced by leashing pets and traveling in groups.

A GoFundMe fundraiser organized by a relative, Mary Melissa Smith, said Balcarras had recently moved to Bella Coola ‘to pursue a new career and begin a new chapter in her life.’

That also meant that she had not established savings or put aside funds to deal with unforeseen expenses, Smith said.

The fundraiser said Balcarras was survived by three young adult children, including a son and two daughters, as well as a grandchild.

Reed, the daughter killed by the four bears, was mourned as having ‘her whole life ahead of her.’

‘She was only beginning her journey into adulthood, making this loss even more heartbreaking,’ Smith wrote.

The fundraiser said the money would go towards covering funeral costs and other related expenses. The funeral is scheduled for Thursday afternoon.

As of Wednesday evening, the campaign had raised about $81,200 CAD (or $57,000 USD) of its $90,000 CAD ($63,166 USD) goal.

The indigenous Nuxalk Nation, which is based in Bella Coola, said the deaths brought back memories of last year’s bear attack.

‘This attack has been deeply re–triggering for our community members as we continue to recover from last year’s attack,’ Tlhmtimut Samuel Schooner, the Nuxalk Nation’s elected chief councilor, said Tuesday.

In response, the Nuxalk Nation has recommended that locals adhere to an 8pm curfew.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police has also deployed officers into the area, who will escort students from the school bus, conduct additional night patrols and provide voluntary late night rides.

Residents were also asked to remove fruit from trees and keep dogs indoors or on a leash.

The Daily Mail has reached out to British Columbia Conservation Officer Service for further comment.

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