Joe gets a call from dispatch about a nearby hunter’s claim to have killed the grizzly behind the recent attacks. When Joe gets to the campground, three men excitedly lead him to a grove where they’ve hung the hunted bear from a crossbeam. Joe’s heart sinks when he sees the sow hanging upside down from its back legs: It is not a grizzly but a black bear. Instead of congratulating the men, Joe writes them a citation for killing a female black bear without authorization. A black bear is half the size of a grizzly and has no hump on its back. Joe tells the men to check what they’re hunting before shooting their guns. With the help of the remorseful men, Joe loads the carcass into his truck.

After depositing the bear in a designated landfill, Joe tours the elk camps on the western side of the forest. Then, he gets an urgent call from Nate, who tells him to get to Double Diamond Ranch, where trouble is brewing. At the ranch, Joe sees the parked SUV of the Mama Bears. Clay Sr. is brandishing a gun, and the Mama Bears seem to be screaming from somewhere.