Learn about living with bears; creating bear smart communities; recreating in bear country; bear safety at work; and managing bears (for wildlife officials).
Category

Blog

20 More Bear Hacks

Part II of our Cheat Sheet for Becoming Bear Smart that, if practiced, will actually save the life of bear.

20 Bear Hacks

With bears emerging from their wintery dens all over North America, we wanted to give you an easy-to-reference cheat sheet of 20 bear smart practices to consider for life in bear country. Keeping bears away from human food sources gives our bears a chance at a long life. Unfortunately, far-too-often a food-conditioned bear becomes a bear with a death sentence.

How Safe is Your BBQ From Bear “Attack”?

The term "attack" is a term we never use when describing human-bear conflicts; it's too sensational, too dramatic, and always inaccurate. Bears aren't bloodthirsty or terrifying and they're certainly not stalking you or doubling as a furry boogey-man in the forest. So sleep easy.

Bearoscope: Capricorn

Most North American black bears are born sometime beginning in mid-January right through to early-February making the yearly batch of cubs the astrological sign of either Capricorn or Aquarius. Being that my own birthday is in January I feel a certain kinship to the Capricorn's born in the cold and dark of their den. As a birthday present to them and as they contemplate life outside of the den, I thought it fitting to read them their very own bearoscope.

Mitigating Bear MVA’s

Highway corridors can, depending on weather, vegetation and other environmental factors attract bears. Unfortunately, this can result in bear/vehicle collisions, traffic jams due to bear viewing, and the habituation of bears to humans. The British Columbia Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure (BC MoT) is working on decreasing bear activity along the Sea to Sky Highway in order to protect both humans and bears.

What’s your bear story?

Don’t underestimate the power of your story. And remember…. the public responds to individuals; they have trouble relating to populations. Even broad and generic terms are difficult to relate to. It’s better to promote your cause through the life and challenges of one bear, who has a name, a family, friends, alliances, rivals and things to do each day. Because bears are actually not that unlike us. Find the similarities and invite people to become a part of their lives.

The power of words

Whether you're an educator, resident, scientist or wildlife officer, as someone who cares about bears, it's your job to spread the bear smart word - choosing your words carefully. Words are powerful. They can find their way deep into the very fabric of our being and belief systems, shaping our thoughts and actions. Words influence our perceptions and affect attitudes. They can inspire and encourage the right behaviour; or hinder and create apathy and inaction.