Multiple wildlife advisories prompt message of awareness, caution for Banff National Park
Nesting loons, calving elk and aggressive coyotes among concerns
As thousands of visitors will likely pour into Banff this weekend, the first since the national park officially reopened Monday, Parks Canada is asking the public to keep wildlife in mind.
Since May 20, six wildlife advisories and related closures have been issued by Parks Canada in Banff National Park.
Nesting loons in the Two Jack Lake day-use area and at the north end of Third Vermilion Lake, fox activity north of Lake Minnewanka’s second boat launch, and the annual elk calving season along the west slope of Tunnel Mountain have prompted traffic and travel closures.
In the Banff townsite, a nesting killdeer and aggressive coyotes approaching dogs resulted in closures, with warnings issued for residents and visitors alike.
Bill Hunt, Parks Canada’s Banff resource conservation manager, said the number of wildlife advisories is indicative of the animals’ response to fewer people in the area.
“We know from the literature and research we’ve done here in Banff that as soon as you give animals that opportunity to have less disturbance or less displacement from humans, they’ll quickly move into those areas,” he said. “They’re quick to react to those opportunities.”
The advisories for the Banff townsite are “definitely unique to COVID,” Hunt said. “We’ve got a killdeer closure on the ball diamonds right in town where a nesting bird has chosen a patch of grass to have her nest … that normally wouldn’t happen if the ball diamonds had been in a normal level of use in the spring,” he said.
In addition to closing the park to visitors on March 23, Parks Canada also suspended some wildlife monitoring activities because of COVID -19.
“One of the main ones that was affected this spring was amphibian surveys and that’s part of one of our indicators of the health of park ecosystems is how our wetlands are doing,” he said. “It’s certainly something we’re concerned about and want to make sure we do collect data on but we’ll be able to catch up next year.”
Some “critical services” in conservation were maintained, such as human/wildlife conflict and elk calving management.
The Banff bison project continued to be monitored throughout the lockdown to ensure the herd wouldn’t leave the park boundaries and Hunt said they’ve been following the bison’s success closely.
“We very carefully have been keeping an eye on them throughout and have the fantastic news that there’s at least 10 calves now that they’ve counted from this year so that’s really exciting,” he said.
Besides the posted wildlife advisories, Hunt said following all rules of the parks reopening are key to the safety of visitors and animals alike.
“Following the COVID protocols … (is) critical and part of that is we’re managing through our parking areas, so if you come to Banff and a parking lot is full, please don’t park along the roadside,” Hunt said.
“It places you at risk, it places wildlife at risk because they’re trying to move between rows of cars and you’re then exceeding the capacity of whatever the day-use area was intended for.
“The main thing is welcome back but please make sure you watch for any new or novel closures or warnings,” Hunt said. “We really need your help when you’re back in the park.”