Bear complaints sprout in spring
Officials remind public to contain garbage and food away from bruins
B.C. conservation officers have already received 300 complaints of bear conflicts with people since April 1, emphasizing the importance of keeping food away from wildlife. Last year, officers fielded more than 15,000 human-wildlife complaints.
“Human-wildlife conflicts are a high priority,” deputy chief Chris Doyle said Thursday from Victoria. “Bears are emerging from their dens and searching for food. It’s really important at this time of year ... to contain attractants.”
He told a news conference that an apartment complex in New Hazelton in west-central B.C. was recently fined $3,150 in provincial court under the Wildlife Act for leaving out bear attractants.
In spring, bears are also attracted to roadside grasses where they can pose a threat to passing vehicles and can even cause “bear jams” when motorists stop to take photographs, he said.
“The problem is that it causes bears to be habituated to people,” he said.
The Conservation Officer Service faced international criticism last year following the suspension of officer Bryce Casavant for refusing to kill two eight-week-old black bear cubs on July 5 near Port Hardy on northern Vancouver Island. Casavant left the Ministry of Environment and is now a natural resource officer based in Port McNeill with the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations.
The two cubs emerged from hibernation about a month ago at the North Island Wildlife Recovery Centre and are living alongside six other bear cubs.
“They’re all doing well,” the centre’s wildlife manager, Julie Mackey, said Thursday.
The expectation is to release the cubs later this year on Vancouver Island after discussions with the B.C. government. Mackey said their diet consists of fruit, vegetables, fish, and wild game donated by hunters.
The province is reviewing its policy on the shooting of young cubs.
Doyle said it remains to be determined whether the two cubs can be successfully returned to the wild. “We hope they are successful upon release and that they’re able to integrate back into the wild bear population,” he said.
He emphasized that officers delivered numerous bears to rehab centres last year “that were determined to be good candidates, not conditioned to human food, not habituated to people, and also determined to be healthy.”
There are 148 conservation officers in the province.