Brown bear freed in France killed in road accident

PARIS, Aug 9 (Reuters) A Slovene bear, blamed by farmers for savaging sheep after being freed in the Pyrenees, has been killed in a road accident, the French Environment Ministry said today.

She was found dead on the road near the southern French town of Lourdes after apparently being hit by a passing vehicle.

The female bear, called Franska, was one of a group of brown bears released in the mountain range straddling the border between France and Spain last year. She recently became the focus of controversy after sheep were found killed in the area.

Farmers had blamed Franska for many of the deaths of their animals and tried in July to force her out on to the plain with firecrackers and gunshots. Local officials said the bear, who wore a tracking collar, was not responsible for most of the deaths.

One of the Slovene bears, let loose under a European programme designed to help species in danger of extinction, was found dead at the foot of a cliff about a year ago after an apparent accident.

Reuters GL DS1426