| |
All Prevention Articles
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.
Three bears spotted in Peaks of Grassi
A spate of grizzly bear activity in a Canmore neighbourhood has wildlife officials warning residents to bear-proof their homes.
Grizzly bears have been spotted mere metres from houses, eating buffalo berries, dogwood and other food in yards adjacent to the Peaks of Grassi community, a wildlife corridor.
Some berry-laden bushes -- prime bear food -- are growing directly behind and in between homes in the neighbourhood.
Trampling car hoods and breaking into houses, bears have been at it again this summer in Durango . But city officials say a new law is doing some good in reducing the food available in town.
Bear Smart Durango's Bryan Peterson said foraging bears have calmed since this month's monsoons helped sprout new natural food outside town. But it was a crazy June and July.
Download brochures and flyers for home, play or your business. These are specifically designed for Whistler residents, businesses and visitors.
MISSOULA — When confronting an angry grizzly bear in the woods, the last thing you want to worry about is the fine print on your can of bear spray.
But as customers scour the shelves for protection in the wake of recent fatal bear attacks, the fine print matters.
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTVA-CBS 11 News) In light of more bear encounters in many Anchorage back yards, one state lawmaker says it is time to come up with answers.
State Rep. Charisse Millett, R-Anchorage, held her second in a series of bear aware events Saturday at the Hillside Trail Head.
Millett was joined by members of the Anchorage Police Department, the Alaska Center for the Environment, Alaska State Troopers and Alaska Waste to better educate Anchorage residents on how to deal with living in bear country, and avoiding deadly trail encounters.
ASPEN, Colo. (AP) — Bear-friendly doorknobs could be out in the Aspen area.
The county commissioners have given preliminary approval to a ban on lever-style door handles on new or remodeled homes. Bears looking for food can hit the levers and open the door but have a much harder time with round doorknobs.
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.
When British Columbia Conservation Officer Andrew Anaka learned that a Bella Coola Valley resident was threatening to "pop" a grizzly bear mother and her three cubs for stealing salmon off his deck, Anaka advised the man to instead remove his salmon. He said the family of bears should only be shot if they were an imminent threat. The resident did not remove the salmon and later shot all four bears.
The Wisconsin bear-hunting season did not show clear evidence of reducing nuisance complaints during 1995-2004, probably because hunting was not effectively designed for that goal. We call for additional research on hunter and bear behavior, including experimental tests of hunting individuals with different levels of involvement in property damage. At the statewide scale, complaints about agricultural damage, other property damage, or human safety concerns did not correlate with each other or with number of bears taken by hunters in the preceding 1-2 years.
The Wisconsin bear-hunting season did not show clear evidence of reducing nuisance complaints during 1995-2004, probably because hunting was not effectively designed for that goal. We call for additional research on hunter and bear behavior, including experimental tests of hunting individuals with different levels of involvement in property damage. At the statewide scale, complaints about agricultural damage, other property damage, or human safety concerns did not correlate with each other or with number of bears taken by hunters in the preceding 1-2 years.
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
Conservation officers in Whitehorse are warning people of a grizzly bear roaming around the Porter Creek and Takhini neighbourhoods, feasting in several residents' compost and garbage carts.
Officers have set up bear traps in the hopes of catching the wandering male bear, which knocked over waste carts at several homes on Monday morning. The bear was still on the loose as of Monday afternoon.
Calls made for measures to keep the animals away from trains. A grizzly has been killed by a train in Banff National Park, renewing calls for new measures to keep the animals away from the tracks.
The bear was hit near Banff on Friday, possibly as it was eating grain that had spilled onto the tracks from passing trains, said Steve Michel, a human-wildlife conflict specialist with Parks Canada.
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.
By next summer, Whistler should be officially labeled "Bear Smart."
Heather Beresford, the municipality's environmental stewardship manager, said thanks to council's approval of the Human-Bear Conflict Management Plan last week, Whistler has completed all the steps for the Bear Smart application.
Small hands shoot up, reaching for Christine Miller.
"I remember you from Beavers!" one boy shouts as other children whisper the name "bear lady" between each other. Miller leans forward and smiles. "It's good to see you again." On Tuesday, June 15, the Bear Aware community coordinator was at Carisbrooke elementary holding a presentation on bears for the young students.
After reading about the bears that were killed over the long weekend I finally had to take a stand and become part of the solution for our mountain friends.
Why is it that people are more interested in speaking up about the dog shit in Whistler than innocent animals with no voice that get killed because of dumb people? Don't forget that we live on their land and they were here way before Whistler became the skiing town it is now. What is it going to take for the black bears to be almost extinct? It makes me furious that people pull over on the side of the highway to get pictures and they are not held responsible for the bear's death. We need to fight for them and to have a law against stopping on the highway except for emergencies, with huge fines for those who break it. There should also be fines in Whistler for getting too close.
INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. - With the black bear death toll this spring already at eight in Nevada's Sierra valleys, regional wildlife officials are warning Tahoe residents to be extra cautious this spring when it comes to trash and food maintenance.
Carl Lackey, a wildlife biologist for the Nevada Department of Wildlife, said the department has killed eight bears this spring, mainly due to the late-season cold weather and snow conditions have pushed bears into the valleys, and residents and visitors locked up their trash or food too late, which drew the bruins into cars and homes.
|
|
|
