A hunter was mauled and killed by a grizzly bear at a large national park in the US on Sunday.
The attack was the first known killing by a bear at the 13.2 million acre national park in Alaska, the National Park Service (NPS) said.
The hunter, whose identity is being withheld pending an investigation, was on a 10-day moose hunt with a friend at the Wrangell-St Elias National Park and Preserve when the attack happened. The victim's friend was not injured.
The NPS said in a statement: "The incident is the first known bear mauling fatality recorded in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve since the park was established in 1980.
"Visitors are encouraged to be 'bear aware' when travelling in the back country and take precautions such as carrying bear spray and using bear resistant food containers."
There are on average 2.56 bear attack deaths in the continent of North America each year, Alaska News Source reports.
According to the NPS, bear attacks are rare as the animals will usually move away from humans if they see or hear them coming.
Should an attack occur, the NPS recommends people play dead or lay flat on their stomachs with their legs spread out.
