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BEAR ACTIVITY SUMMARY FOR THE BOW VALLEY
(Banff National Park East Gate to Bow Valley Provincial Park) For the period: April 16 to April 23, 2021
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.
SUMMARY
Bear activity continues to slowly increase on both sides of the valley as there have been reports of bears seen wandering through some of the MD of Bighorn hamlets, near Canmore, as well as a few sporadic sightings of bears down in K-Country.
Other wildlife have also been seen in the Canmore area as a cougar was spotted a couple of weeks ago (but was only recently reported) near a playground in the Eagle Terrace Area on the north side of the valley and elk continue to be seen regularly along the river trails and throughout town. This serves as a reminder that wildlife can be encountered anywhere, anytime and we always need to be prepared and have bear spray with us.
Here is a short video of some of the first grizzly bears seen down in K-Country this year.
Video courtesy of Ryan Phinney
At this time of the year, bears are emerging from their dens hungry, and are often found in the valley bottoms looking for foods such as fresh shoots, roots, bulbs, and dandelions. This can result in an increased chance of encounters with humans as we too spend most of our time in the valley bottoms! To add to this, people have been flooding to the mountains to partake in numerous recreation activities such as hiking and backcountry skiing at varying elevation levels which increases the chance of encountering bears even further as people are spread out all over the place. As such, all recreationists should always be expecting to encounter bears and mentally plan for this, which includes carrying bear spray and being prepared to use it. That includes people who are ski touring!
With warmer weather on the horizon (hopefully), the ditches will be greening up along the highways in the Bow Valley and that is going to draw all kinds of wildlife into the ditches looking for that green grass. Motorists need to obey speed limits and constantly scan for wildlife feeding in the ditches along roadways. If you see one animal be prepared to see more and adjust your speed accordingly. We see a high mortality rate of wildlife from vehicles in the Bow Valley, so we want all motorists to travel safely and help protect our wildlife by understanding that the likelihood of encountering wildlife on or close to the road is increased during the spring season.
You can greatly reduce the risk of close encounters with wildlife by doing the following:
Make lots of noise to alert wildlife to your presence and give them time to move off the trail.
Travel in a group (while maintaining social distance), keep children close by and avoid heading out at dusk, dawn or night when wildlife is most active.
GIVE THEM SPACE! Physical distancing is important for humans AND wildlife!
Look and listen for signs of wildlife and do not wear earbuds/headphones. It is important that you are able to hear what is going on around you!
Some great tips from Wildlife Ambassador Karen!
KEEP DOGS ON A LEASH unless you are in a designated off-leash dog area. Practice being able to pull out your bear spray while holding your dog on a leash in case of an encounter, or consider leaving your dog at home. Remember to pick up after your dogs as their feces can act as an attractant for bears.
Give wildlife space by NOT entering closed areas!
Carry bear spray in an easily accessible location and be prepared to use it! DO NOT CARRY IT IN YOUR BACKPACK! Make sure it is not expired, and it should be carried while walking on well-travelled trails, including the trails in and around town; it is also effective against non-hibernating wildlife such as cougars, wolves, coyotes and elk.
Ensure that all attractants such as food, garbage, recycling, bird feeders, pets, pet food and greasy bbq’s are secure and not accessible by wildlife at home and out on the trails. Bears are especially hungry at this time of year and always searching for food so please do not draw them into residential areas, picnic areas or campsites by providing them with any sort of a meal.
There have been two recent reports on grizzly bears that may be of interest.
The Alberta Government has released the new Alberta Grizzly Bear Recovery Plan
Foothills Research Institute has released their Estimates of Grizzly Bear Populations for BMA4 in 2018, which includes the area directly to the north and northeast of the Bow Valley. The 2018 population estimate for grizzly bears in BMA 4 is 88, up from 42 bears found in 2005. There are 59 – 130 bears living in this area. In 2005, it was 32 – 50 bears. This means that the population has doubled in 13 years, which works out to an annual rate of increase of 6%.
A summary of the report is available here. The full 95-page report is also available on their website.
CURRENT WARNINGS AND CLOSURES
Click here for the complete list of all Alberta Parks warnings and closures in the Bow Valley and Kananaskis Country.
Click here for the complete list of all warnings and closures in Banff National Park.
Here is a list of some Annual Closures in Kananaskis Country.
Click here for current information from Alberta Parks about visiting their parks during COVID-19. Click here for current information from Parks Canada about visiting their parks during COVID-19.
AND NOW SOME PAWS-ITIVE NEWS
In honour of National Volunteer Week (April 18-24) and on behalf of the Biosphere Institute and the wildlife that call this valley home, we wanted to recognize and send out many hugs and thanks to our amazing Volunteer Wildlife Ambassadors! Their dedication and passion does not go unnoticed and even during these difficult times they still find ways to make a difference. The theme for National Volunteer Week for 2021 is: The Value of One, The Power of Many.
Wildlife Ambassadors Sam and Susan in action!
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