The farmer who shot the polar bear that landed in Iceland easiler this week told reporters he was “surprised” by the events that took place that day. The bear has been skinned, and its body will be sent to a lab for study.
According to Vísir, the farmer in question was tending his sheep near Þistilfjörður when they started acting up for reasons the farmer couldn’t tell at first. As sheep are acutely aware of the presence of predators, the farmer, who had a hunting rifle on him, looked around the area, and spotted the bear. He fired two shots, felling it with the second.
At this time, three hunters were already chasing the bear. When asked if he was surprised to see a polar bear on his land, the farmer replied, “You could well imagine.”
The bear has been skinned, as the fur was apparently in excellent condition, and the body will be sent to a lab for further study. It will then be stuffed, and in all likelihood mounted in a museum somewhere.
In somewhat related news, Þistilfjörður is also the home town of Minister of Finance Steingrímur J. Sigfússon.