WildSafeBC Elk Valley reports black bears are still active in much of the province.

“This is a critical time of year when natural foods begin to wane and bears are preparing for winter denning. They may be consuming an average of 20,000 calories per day to put on the fat they need to survive over the winter,” WildSafeBC stated.

“Bears lose about 30% of their body weight over winter and do not eat, drink or defecate while denning.”

Ensure that bears are not learning to find unnatural foods in your community. This can lead to food-conditioning, a learned behaviour where bears associate people with food.

Keep your garbage secure.

The red bears in the above map denote bears that were accessing garbage.

Also, avoid the temptation to put your bird feeder up too soon.

Check out WildSafeBC’s Wildlife Alert Reporting Program to sign up for free alerts in your community.

WildSafeBC Elk Valley

Article Share