Braxton Taylor
If there’s a universal truth about hunters, it’s that they can’t help but brag a little—even if it’s about something illegal. Any well-seasoned game warden knows this; and knows that the best place to find a criminal is at the local bar, running his mouth.
In south central Montana, a textbook example played out this spring, beginning when a wildlife biologist in Carbon County caught wind of a secondhand story about a guy who captured two bear cubs and staged them for a photo shoot with his son. The biologist called up local Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks game warden, Frank Blundetto, and tracking down the story wasn’t too difficult.
With a quick search, Blundetto found the photo on social media, posted by the offender’s wife. Then he made a trip to their house in Stillwater County, where he met Reuben MacArthur in mid May. MacArthur confirmed that he had taken the photo, and that it was in fact his son in the picture.
According to MacArthur, the week earlier he’d been black bear hunting in the Pryor Mountains with his son and their hounds. Hound hunting is permitted in a handful of areas in Montana that don’t contain habitat overlap with grizzlies.
McArthur had already filled his bear tag for the season, but his son still had a valid tag they were trying to fill. At some point during the day, the hounds treed a sow black bear that the hunters could tell was still nursing. MacArthur told Blundetto that he pulled his dogs off the bear and put them in his truck, then went back to get a puppy that was still on the loose. The dog-in-training had located the two cubs—both less than a year old—and cornered them.
MacArthur then told the game warden that he took a photo of his son holding the cubs by their scruffs. After letting them go, he reports that one ran uphill and the other climbed a tree.
MacArthur is being held liable for his son and their collective wildlife crimes; and is facing charges for unlawful possession of a big game animal. If found guilty, he could face a $500 to $2,000 fine, up to six months in jail, and suspension of all fishing and hunting licenses in Montana for 30 months. His arraignment was originally scheduled for mid-August, but has now been postponed to October.
If convicted, he wouldn’t be the first in recent years to run afoul of the law for wildlife crimes involving bear cubs. In 2022, a mother and her son illegally shot two black bear cubs in Oregon while trespassing on private land and were hit with a $15,000 fine, a three-year hunting license suspension, and 60 months of bench probation.
The next year, a 52-year-old man was arrested in Colorado on 15 charges for killing a sow black bear and her cubs, cutting off their heads and paws, and leaving their carcasses to rot. In that case, the suspect was identified in part because he took a photo posing with the three dead bears. He had to pay a $19,000 fine and serve two years of probation.
Montana law prohibits hunters from killing black bear cubs less than one year old as well as killing sows with cubs. MacArthur claims to have released the cubs and let the mother go, and he isn’t being charged with killing any black bears. But Montana law also prohibits capturing big game animals, even if for just a short time.
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