> a hunter was mauled by a brown bear defending its cub on admiralty island in southeast alaska last sunday in an encounter that had her head inside a bears jaw, then  miraculously  out again. > amanda compton, 44, was hunting black-tailed deer with hunting partner nicholas orr on the island 15 miles southwest of juneau around 11 a.m. on sunday. they were about an hour and a half into their hunt when they came to a muskeg with a cluster of denser brush, compton said. > both hunters were carrying rifles, and compton said hers was loaded with the safety on. > compton was paces ahead of orr when a sow emerged from an island of brush directly in front of them, reared, roared, and charged compton, orr said. > it was like stepping on a landmine, orr, 45, said. youre just walking along, and then boom, you get ambushed. > i probably had two seconds to determine that the bushes were moving and something was coming at me, that it was a bear, and then to seek as much shelter as i could, compton said from her home in juneau, days after the attack. which was getting down in a ball and putting my hands and arms over my head and face. > both compton and orr said what happened next was quick: the sow was on compton in seconds, had opened its jaw, put her head in its mouth, and gnawed. then, just as quickly as it started, it released her and ran off. by the time that orr  who lost his balance stepping backwards during the charge  was on his feet, the bear had let go of compton and was retreating. not even burrsday yet.
Brazil