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.

The most recent bear to have been destroyed by conservation officers met his fate early Tuesday (July 27). According to Whistler RCMP, police received a call on Tuesday at 2:24 a.m. about a bear that had entered the basement suite of a home on Tyrol Crescent in Alta Vista for the second time in the previous 24 hours.

RCMP Sgt. Shawn LeMay said it appeared that the bear had entered through an open window of the basement suite, leaving it slightly ajar. It went inside and ate food from the refrigerator and from elsewhere in the kitchen. It had also eaten food in the yard, LeMay said.

Police officers who responded to the call managed to scare the male bear up a tree. Conservation officers then arrived and determined that it was the same bear that entered a home on Panorama Ridge last Wednesday (July 21). Dave Jevons of the B.C. Conservation Officer Service said that in that instance, the bear had entered the home, was scared away by police officers and returned, trying to break in again the following night.

Jevons said the bear was initially captured in July 2009 after having caused problems in Squamish. It was relocated to a point near Cloudburst Mountain in the Upper Squamish Valley before making its way to Whistler this summer, Jevons said.

The bear killed this week was the third bear to have been killed this year in the Whistler after becoming a public safety threat, the second for having repeatedly broken into homes.

“It is important for all of us to understand that once a bear starts breaking into homes and becomes habituated to this as a reliable food source, they do not unlearn the behaviour” and become a significant risk to public safety, LeMay said.

The bear that was relocated on Saturday (July 24) after its rampage on the Nicklaus North Golf Course is likely to meet a similar fate if it returns to Whistler and exhibits similar behaviour, Jevons said.

Conservation officers believe it’s the same one that broke into a home in Alpine Meadows on Thursday (July 22), but could not confirm that when they encountered it again on Saturday, he said. Instead, they decided to relocate it to the Meager Creek area northwest of Pemberton, some 90 kilometres away.

“It was seen around Meadow Park, then at Nicklaus North it was eating the seats on a golf cart, got into one of the carts and threw the bags all around,” Jevons said. “It was completely habituated — even when it was hazed, it barely responded to the hazing. It was scared off and returned minutes later.

“Then later at a residence, it attempted to take barbecue food while residents were cooking on the barbecue.”

A young male bear that led RCMP and conservation officers on a chase in and around Whistler Village early last week also was captured and relocated.

The small bear that came into Whistler Village several times July 18 to 20, and was responsible for stealing a man’s lunch and damaging a garbage bin in Rebagliati Park, was pursued and shot with a tranquilizer dart late Wednesday, July 21, Sgt. Chris Doyle of the Conservation Officer Service said on Thursday (July 22).

More than once during the ordeal, the bear ventured onto the Village Stroll, and appeared to have little fear of humans, officers said.

After it was tranquilized, “due to its persistent conflict behaviour, the decision was made to translocate it about 80 kilometres away,” Doyle said.

Jevons said those weren’t the only bear-related incidents conservation officers had to deal with during the past week.

“We definitely had a very busy month of July, linked to the poor berry crop and the availability of non-natural food sources,” he said. “We want to remind people to keep doors and windows closed.

“We’ve had a number of other incidents recently — one near Easy Street at the bottom of Lorimer Road, one in Alta Vista, and one in Creekside — where they’ve tried to enter. We’re urging people to keep their doors and windows closed; otherwise they may have bears entering to get food.”

Residents are also urged to keep garbage and other potential attractants indoors and out of bears’ reach. To report a bear sighting or potential human-bear conflict, call (604) 905-BEAR or 1-877-952-7277.

Editor's Note: Further information on this topic: Bear destroyed after house break-in, Pique Newsmagazine, July 29th, 2010