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The information below is based upon a compilation of bear information provided by government agencies and unconfirmed sightings reported by the public over the last week. It is not intended to be used as a real-time, complete record of where bears are in the valley.
BEAR ACTIVITY SUMMARY
(Banff National Park East Gate to Bow Valley Provincial Park) For the period: June 25 to July 2, 2021
Bears continue to be seen regularly along trails, roads, in and around town and in the valley bottoms where most of their available food is located. Expect to run into a bear while out on the trails and remember to make lots of noise, travel in a group, keep pets on a leash, carry bear spray and be prepared to use it in case of a close encounter.
Traffic volumes along the major roads are increasing, making it more difficult for wildlife to cross. A wolf pup was killed by a vehicle on the Trans Canada highway in Banff National Park which serves as a reminder that motorists need to obey speed limits and slow down accordingly when passing roadside wildlife.
This photo of a black bear was taken by Candice Clarke in K-Country.
VIEW CURRENT WARNINGS AND CLOSURES
The Elk Calving Warning remains in effect for Canmore. Most elk calves are already mobile and moving around with less defensive mothers, however there continue to be other cow elk that will aggressively defend their calves by kicking and charging at people who are getting too close! Be aware of your surroundings, even on popular and well visited trails around town and along the river. Stay at least 30 metres (3 school bus lengths) away from all elk and do not try to sneak past them on a trail! Keep pets on a leash and carry bear spray.
Cow elk with calf.
SOME THINGS TO ‘BEAR’ IN MIND
Buffaloberries will start to ripen in a few weeks. Please be proactive and remove berry bushes from your yard NOW before you attract a bear into town. It is YOUR responsibility to make sure that bears do not have a reason to linger in your yard, resulting in bears being relocated or destroyed.
SABRE and FRONTIERSMAN Bear Spray recall: Health Canada is recalling approximately 130,000 cans of bear spray sold between February 2021 and June 2021. The affected products can also be identified by yellow nozzles with expiry dates of: March 2024, August 2024, September 2024, October 2024, November 2024, and December 2024.
Most of these bear sprays work but the standard for their manufacturer is 100% reliability, 100% of the time which is why they are being recalled.
Health Canada said as of last Friday, there have been no reports of injuries as a result of the defective product and consumers who have purchased any of the defective products should return them to the points of purchase for a replacement or a refund.
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BEARS IN THE NEWS
A grizzly bear mother and one of her yearling cubs were struck and killed by a train in Banff National Park.
Check out this video of a grizzly bear passing close by people on a bridge.
Food for Thought?
Watching for Bear Signs – Tracks by Derek Ryder, Wildlife Ambassador and IGA Interpretive Guide
Kananaskis Country is home to a lot of animals, including bears. Recreating safely in bear country means more than just knowing what to do in a bear encounter. It’s also understanding signs that bears are around, so that maybe those encounters can be prevented.
Bears are big enough that they almost always leave evidence that they’ve been present – if you know what to look for. Keeping your eyes peeled for this evidence can help you be aware if bears are present, and will decrease the risk that you’ll accidentally run into a bear. In this series of articles, I’m going to help you learn about some of the signs bears leave in the forest.
One of the most obvious signs that bears are around is the footprints they leave. Tracks are only left on soft or wet ground. If you remember the last couple of days of the weather, it can help you understand when Ms. Bear might have passed. If you know it hasn’t rained or been wet where you are for several days, then that track in what is now dried up mud is now old. Rain and water wash away tracks, so if the ground is still wet or it’s raining, and you find an obvious track, it’s very fresh. In the fall, knowing when it snowed last can be a big giveaway as to when tracks were made. Tracks in snow exposed to sun will melt out over several days, going from quite distinct to less well defined. Tracks melting out will also get bigger. The track above was very fresh (less than 12 hrs. old). The pads remain distinct, even though there is ice underneath.
When the mud or snow is just right, it becomes easy to tell Black Bear from Grizzly Bear tracks. The two tracks are similar, but different. As the graphic shows, the simple difference is that you can draw a straight line under a Grizzly’s toes, but not under a Black Bear’s. The claw marks are also MUCH farther in front of the toes of the Grizzly, too. However, in practice, I find claw impressions often are not that noticeable. And track size alone won’t help you tell the difference between bear types. A full-grown male Black Bear can be as big as a smaller full-grown female Grizzly. Accordingly, their feet can be similarly sized.
In this photo, the tracks are obviously Black Bear tracks. Notice how much curve there is in the toes; there’s no chance you could draw a straight line under them. But also notice how indistinct the claw marks are, even given the quality of the other aspects of the track. You can only clearly make claw marks out in only two of the tracks. When you see and are trying to identify bear tracks, go by toe shape first, then look to see if you can see claw marks.
Another great thing to look at with tracks is gait, or distance between the tracks. This will give you an excellent idea of the size of the bear. Coupled with overall print size, you can often readily identify when cubs are present. In this photo, that’s my feet just shoulder width apart against the gait of an obvious Grizzly track. That’s a very short gait, telling me it’s a cub. The print is very small compared to my foot as well, confirming this was not a particularly big cub that went by. Mom’s nearby track confirmed it. You can also look for multiple tracks, meaning bears travelling together. Recent, multiple tracks, with evidence of cubs, is grounds for making a bunch of noise and getting very bear aware.
Finally, you have to remember: big animal = big feet. The card in this photo is 10” long, which is longer than my foot. That is one VERY big grizzly track, meaning it was left by a VERY big bear. That serves as a reminder that, if you’re taking photos of tracks, it’s REALLY helpful to put something in your photo (like your foot or a card or a pole basket) to provide a sense of scale.
Make it a habit when you’re out in the wilderness to stop at every mud puddle, dried up or otherwise. Look for tracks. You’ll often be surprised as to what you see.
AND NOW SOME PAWS-ITIVE NEWS
We’re hoping that you survived the recent heat wave, our trick was eating lots of ice cream and staying cool by visiting local swimming spots. This video shows some bears near Coquitlam had the same idea - cooling off in a backyard swimming pool! A good reminder that bears might use lakes and rivers to cool off too - always be bear aware!
Please remember BEARS CAN BE ENCOUNTERED ANYWHERE, ANYTIME!
Report any sightings of a bear, cougar, wolf or any aggressive wildlife in Kananaskis Country or the Bow Valley to Kananaskis Emergency Services at 403.591.7755