I have several friends who are conservation officers here in the Yukon.
Quite a few years ago, one of them decided to use 000 buck in a 12 GA on a black bear that was in a schoolyard. It was after lunch, and he was concerned about a rifle bullet fully penetrating the bear and richoceting off somewhere.
He shot the bear, full in the face from around 20 feet IIRC. The bear's face bloomed red with blood, but the bear did not go down. Rather he turned and ran, which led to no small amount of excitement, which is another story.
After the bear was retrieved and skinned, it was determined that seven shot had hit the bear in the head.
Certainly, one event is not conclusive, however it was enough that Doug never used a shotgun in bear work again. I will be glad to put you in contact with him if you would like to discuss buckshot on bears.
Ted
