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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: April 30 to May 7, 2021

Bear season is in full swing as both black and grizzly bears have been seen in the Bow Valley and Kananaskis Country. Mother bears have and will continue to emerge from their dens with their cubs. It is very important to give these new mothers and their young, and ALL wildlife, lots of space!

In some very sad local news, a former Canmore resident was killed in a fatal bear attack near Waiparous Creek on Tuesday evening.

VIEW CURRENT WARNINGS AND CLOSURES

SOME THINGS TO ‘BEAR’ IN MIND

The roads and trails are busy, and with things greening up and dandelions already making an appearance along highways and trails, we all need to be extra vigilant and mentally prepare ourselves that the likelihood of encountering wildlife is increased during the spring season!

Did you know that last year Kananaskis experienced the highest visitation rate in history? Find out more in this article about the Challenging Visitation Increase to Kananaskis in 2020. It also provides some simple guidance on things that visitors can do to help keep the parks clean, safe and enjoyable for humans and wildlife!

Important info: Starting June 1st, all vehicles stopping in Kananaskis Country and provincial sites in the Bow Valley Corridor will need to purchase a Kananaskis Conservation Pass. You can also watch this video that talks about the Kananaskis Conservation Pass.

BEARS IN THE NEWS

A woman walking her two dogs in Colorado was killed in a bear attack.
A B.C. man and his two dogs escaped serious injury following a suspected grizzly bear attack on Tuesday afternoon in the Shuswap.

These articles are not meant to frighten you into not heading outdoors in bear country. Instead, they are an important reminder that although rare, bear attacks can happen to ANYONE, and if you need a refresher you can check out the following resources:

How to avoid close encounters with wildlife.

How to properly use bear spray.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT?

What are the Bears eating today? Part 7 in a Series by Derek Ryder, Volunteer Wildlife Ambassador & IGA Interpretive Guide

Living and recreating safely in bear country means understanding many things, from signs that bears are around to what to do in a bear encounter. As we wander in the wilderness (or even in town sites) we are travelling in a bear’s home: their living areas, dining areas, and even their bathrooms. Recognizing the food sources that bears are currently eating can help raise your awareness of the possibility that bears are around where you are at any given moment.

Bears are omnivores, but while they love the ability to get a good protein source like an elk or a deer, almost 80% of a bear’s diet is fruits and vegetables. This is true of both grizzly bears and black bears in the Bow Valley. Most people know that bears love berries, but it isn’t berry season in May. So what ARE bears eating this month?

By now most bears have emerged from their dens and through the month of May, they’ll leave the higher alpine environments where they den, and move down to the snow free valley bottoms, so bear sightings and encounters will increase through the month. Along the way down from the alpine, if they can find a carcass of something killed over the winter by an avalanche, they’ll be very happy. However, there are no guarantees for that to happen, so most bears will rely on their veggie diets.

Research on bear diets clearly shows that an early season food source are the new, fresh shoots of the Horsetail family of plants. There are nine species here, but the one you’ll most likely see is the Common Horsetail. Other members of the Horsetail family, and reasonably indistinguishable from Common Horsetails, include the Scouring-Rushes. The way to tell the various species apart is to look at the stem joints, which are all different. To a bear, all members of the Horsetail family are just good eats.

Often mistaken for ferns, Horsetails tend to grow in wetter places. Often, they grow in great carpets, and when full grown in mid-June, create a rather magical, elfin-feel to the forest. They get up to 30 cm tall, and are delicate and soft. Bears only eat Horsetails in the spring when they are young and fresh shoots, much as humans eat fiddleheads, which are the immature shoots of ferns.

Part of the reason that bears do not touch Horsetails after early June is the plant has an unusual attribute: it pulls silica out of the soil. As it grows, it becomes more and more made of silica. When it dies in the fall, it turns white because the silica is almost all that is left. That silica can actually cut holes in the digestive tract of anything that eats it. This is how some plants in the family got the name “Scouring-Rush”; in mid- to late-summer, they were used as scouring pads to clean pots, and even as sandpaper. Indigenous people used them to polish arrows, bows and pipes.

We, too, can eat the young ones, but be careful. They contain an enzyme called Thiaminase that destroys vitamin B1. While it has no effect on bears and the many other animals that eat Horsetails, it can kill cattle and sheep that eat it. If eaten raw, it can very severely affect people, especially those with high blood pressure. Horsetails must be cooked to destroy the Thiaminase.

Keep an eye out for the mid-Month bear report through the summer and fall. Each one will have an article on “What are the bears eating this month?”

AND NOW SOME PAWS-ITIVE NEWS

With all the recent negative news surrounding bears and COVID, here are some of the funniest photos from the Comedy Wildlife Awards that will hopefully put a smile on your face!

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

Bear Report - May 7, 2021