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All Education Articles
In the north woods of Minnesota, a black bear cub is born. It happens every January, and most of us would not give it a second thought. But this time thousands of people watched a wild bear give birth via a live streaming webcam. The bear's name is Lily. She is a research bear, and she has turned into an internet sensation. Thanks to author and artist Cindy Terry, Lily's story is now a delightful children's book. Filled with true facts about black bears, the story is about Lily and two small friends who stay in Lily's den for the winter as they wait for "the big event." They teach Lily about friendship while teaching the reader about bears.
As summer winds down and bears rush to pack on the pounds before hibernation, at least a few ursines have exhibited unusually aggressive behavior.
Director of Bear Smart Durango Bryan Peterson said unprovoked, aggressive behavior is unusual for black bears, but it's not unheard of.
A recent pair of incidents were reported in which bears exhibited this type of behavior, both taking place in the heart of Durango.
Wildlife officials in Canmore, Alta., say fewer bear sightings in the past week mean their efforts have been paying off.
Several residents had reported seeing grizzly bears in town in recent weeks.
Since then, officers have been cutting down berry bushes in the area and have set several traps.
"We're going to be continuing that control work in the next week or so," said Darcy Whiteside, of the province's Sustainable Resource Development department.
He glides with purpose striding smoothly from one edge of the ski trail to the other. His pace is faster than usual - less food more travel. His long neck, like a reversed rudder, angles through the metre-high foliage, eyes alert to colour. With no obvious effort he quickly nibbles a few berries, floppy lips and a protruding tongue finishing one stem while instantly rebounding to an adjacent stem for more. Nothing there. Keep going... keep looking.
He pushes away from the patch and plows through a cluster of regenerating mountain hemlock conifers. Letting the tips brush his underside, he signs his presence for the day.
Re: Bowhunting within the RMOW boundaries
On behalf of Whistler Residents Opposed to Urban Hunting, we would like to ask that mayor and council regulate bow hunting within municipal boundaries; or at minimum in areas that are used recreationally.
According to the B.C. Hunting Regulations, most municipalities have local bylaws restricting and controlling the use of weapons, firearms and bows within their boundaries. And Whistler does in fact have a bylaw that makes it unlawful to discharge a firearm within our municipal limits (Firearms Regulation Bylaw No. 874, 1991). Provincial regulations do, however, stipulate "No Hunting" areas making it illegal to bow hunt within 100 metres of a dwelling or playground within the RMOW.
“I heard a noise in the carport and I thought it was a dog. When I went to check it turned out to be a bear, about 12 feet away, going through the garbage. I was shocked.”
On July 22 Phillip van Niekirk experienced a bear “interaction” at his home in North Vancouver. In this case, the animal entered his carport.
In 2008, the North Shore Black Bear Society and the North Shore Recycling Program (NSRP) jointly developed guidelines for composting in bear country to provide consistent information to residents who wish to reduce the garbage they send to landfill while maintaining a bear-safe neighbourhood.
Since then, we have collaborated to deliver the composting-in-bear-country message to North Shore residents through popular community events, newspaper articles and ads, information brochures, how-to videos, public workshops and private gatherings.
Conservation officers this week shot and killed a bear that had repeatedly broken into homes in Whistler over the past few days, and relocated another that ate the seats of a golf cart and tossed around bags of clubs at Nicklaus North Golf Course.
Another bear, meanwhile, was killed after having been struck by a vehicle on Highway 99 south of Pemberton.
Residents of a Canadian city debated whether police correctly handled a call reporting that a bear was shot and killed in April. Police tried to contact the Ministry of Natural Resources, but no staff in the area were trained to handle bears, which haven’t been seen here in over 40 years. After all, this was London, Ont. — not an alpine town in British Columbia.
An investigation into the death of a 70-year-old hiker who was mauled by a grizzly bear near Yellowstone National Park last month provides some important insight into what happened and how future attacks may be avoided.
While the death was a tragic accident, the report by the investigation team recommends some changes in policy by the Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team that make sense.
There has been an increase in black bear activity and human-bear conflicts in Whistler over the past couple of weeks, with conservation officers having tried unsuccessfully to trap a bear that’s believed to be responsible for at least two home break-ins.
Conservation Officer Chris Doyle said the same bear is believed to have broken into two homes in the Alta Vista/Blueberry area on Monday (July 12). In one incident, someone was home when the bear got in, and the occupant escaped out a window while the bear gained access to food in the house, he said.
Jul 15, 2010 — Media Coverage: Stay Alert
Whistler Mountain resident mother black bear Brownie with one of two six-month-old cubs grazing up through a clover patch. Six females have produced 11 cubs in the ski area with a 100 per cent survival rate so far.
The Whistler RCMP are asking all residents - but especially residents living in Blueberry, Alta Vista and Brio - to lock their doors and not leave any food or garbage laying around. They believe the same bear may have broken into at least two houses last week, opening unlocked doors to gain entry.
Too many black bears are being killed in North Shore neighbourhoods because they see our garbage as an ursine smorgasbord.
Coquitlam Mayor Richard Stewart is fed up and is calling for fines of up to $10,000 for brazen citizens who flout bear-aware bylaws, some of which currently impose fines as low as $500.
Conservation officers had their hands full on Sunday (July 11) afternoon, responding to two consecutive calls involving bears that were overly habituated to humans.
In one of the cases, the bear was put down after "it stood on its hind legs and swatted" at an RCMP member, said Lower Mainland conservation officer, Alexandre Desjardins.
Bear mating season has grizzly bears doing what comes naturally, but what may seem odd to hikers in the area of the Skogan Pass, who witnessed the behaviour on Saturday.
Four hikers were making their way down a trail near Wind Valley when they saw a grizzly bear running down the same path. Since they thought it was coming towards them, they pulled out their bear spray and sprayed it when the bear was still 20 metres away from them.
While Hope retreats to a roadless area and we wait for her to become accessible again, we're thinking about the holiday traffic.
Being hit by a vehicle on Highway 169 is one of the biggest mortality factors in Shadow's clan. The highway bisects the study area, and summer traffic is heavy-especially on holiday weekends. Two days ago, the BBC filmed Juliet crossing the highway near Soudan, MN, with her 3 cubs; Sharon, Shirley, and Boy Named Sue. Realizing the family was about to cross, Gordon Buchanan set up his camera beside the highway while other crew members set up farther away to capture the big picture. Drivers saw Gordon and wondered what he was filming. They slowed down and looked-then stopped and watched the family safely cross.
GREAT SMOKY MOUNTAINS NATIONAL PARK — A new six-minute video podcast developed by Great Smoky Mountains Association informs viewers about hiking safety and wildlife behavior, particularly black bears.
To view the podcast, visit http://thegreatsmokymountains.org/hike_smokies_challenge
Police officers have shot and killed a black bear in West Vancouver after it broke into homes in the neighbourhood and stole food from their refrigerators.
The bear was shot by West Vancouver police around 2 p.m.
The male bear, estimated to be between four and five years old, broke into several neighbourhood homes over recent weeks, and had learned how to open fridges to reach the food inside.
A bear was destroyed in Elkford on Monday – the first to be shot in the Elk Valley this year after repeatedly feeding from garbage and showing no fear of humans.
Conservation officer Frank de Boon said the decision was made to destroy the two or three-year-old male black bear after residents in the Morrissey Crescent area reported it had been feeding from garbage bins and sleeping in backyards for the past two weeks.
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