The number of reported bear calls this year decreased by more than a hundred, but don’t let the numbers fool you, says a conservation officer.
The Ministry of Natural Resources received about 206 reported bear calls at the end of July this year, a decrease from 2009 with 328 reported calls. Ross Johnston, a conservation officer with the MNR, said a combination of better bear management, a good growing season for wild berries and mild winters helped to lower the number of nuisance bear calls while seeing an increase in the population.
"I think the bear population has been on the rise for eight to 10 years," Johnston said. "We track the number of calls we get here about problem bears. We are down a third from where we were last year. There is a huge crop of blueberries and raspberries out there and I suspect that’s why we’re not getting a lot of calls."
The MNR started collecting data on problem bear calls in 2004 and since then, the reports have varied from year to year. He added the lowest number of calls was about 193 in 2006.
Johnston said they had tranquilized three bears this year, one bear in 2009, none in 2008 and 18 in 2007. He added they only go out to tranquilize when police call for assistance.
However, Johnston said Thunder Bay shouldn’t be fooled by those numbers.
"Thunder Bay has bear habitat all around the city," he said. "It’s bear, moose, deer and wolf habitat. There is wildlife there. I hope the message that we are giving out about managing attractants is hitting home."
Out at Sleeping Giant Provincial Park, Al Comeau, park superintendent, said it’s not unusual for campers to spot a bear from time to time. He added the numbers aren’t always correct with a number of people reporting on a single bear.
"They don’t turn into nuisance bears until they get access to people’s food," Comeau said. "We’re fairly proactive in ensuring people keep coolers locked up in their vehicles. "
Comeau said the number of bears reported stayed about the same with three bears reported in July and one bear relocated so far.
