No sign of injured bear, but activists prepare to build on Russell’s legacy
He played a role in reversing provincial ban on rehabilitating black bear orphans
Russell, the wayward and injured Springbank bear, hasn’t been seen since the end of hibernation, say wildlife rescue activists.
But they say even if he didn’t survive a long, harsh winter, his role in reversing a provincial government ban on rehabilitating black bear orphans is set to be fulfilled.
On Sunday, volunteers made improvements to several bruin enclosures at the Cochrane Ecological Institute to prepare to receive animals orphaned during the province’s bear-hunting season, which began April 1.
“Those four bears changed it; they’ll be responsible for saving hundreds of animal lives,” said wildlife biologist Lisa Dahlseide.
She was referring to Russell and three bear cubs found in the spring of 2017 in a Banff National Park washroom, all of which turned the spotlight on the province’s eightyear-old policy of forbidding the rehabilitation of orphaned black bears.
The trio of bear cubs had to be flown to a wildlife-rescue facility in Ontario.
Russell, who was suffering from an injured hind leg, was seen for weeks late last year loitering around a field at Highway 22 and Springbank Road.
The Cochrane institute pressured the province to allow it special permission to take in the bear over the winter, but was denied over fears of it becoming habituated to humans.
Hopes that Russell would be sighted after emerging from hibernation haven’t been realized, said Dahlseide, whose colleagues have been watching the Springbankarea field closely for months.
“Maybe he moved farther west to his maternal den site — I want to stay positive,” she said.
“We had a very harsh winter, he was underweight, had a poor coat and was injured, so we’ve thought the likelihood of him surviving the winter wasn’t good.”
Activists set up a wooden artificial den in trees near the field for Russell’s possible use and equipped it with a surveillance camera. But there was no sign of the young bear, last seen Dec. 23, though another critter made use of the hibernaculum, Dahlseide said.
“A skunk took up residency — there’s tonnes of pictures of him in the cosy, warm den,” she said.
On Sunday, volunteers at the Cochrane institute forged ahead to ensure four enclosures were up to provincial standards to accept any black bear orphans.
Ten bears at a time can be handled at the facility, whose 57 hectares make it the largest such refuge in Alberta, Dahlseide said.
“Each enclosure has a water feature and some are packed with white spruce trees,” said the biologist.
“Everyone’s really excited.”
While the province has reversed its stance on black bear rescues, many other species remain outside the protocol, including big cats, wolves, coyotes and ungulates, she said.
“Grizzly bear cubs are still euthanized and they’re an endangered species,” said Dahlseide, who’s hopeful some wild canines and cats will soon be added to the rehabilitation list.
And provincial wildlife officials, she said, will still determine which black bears are received by the Cochrane institute, which is the only such accredited facility in the province.
The institute has launched a GoFundMe page to finance its work.