The first grizzly bear is out of its den in Banff, prompting national park wildlife experts to warn residents and visitors it’s the time of year to be bear aware.
Data collected from the GPS collar of bear 122, a large male weighing about 700 pounds when he went into his den on Dec. 3, showed he began moving around on March 27.
The bear was first spotted Sunday (March 31) and again Monday morning (April 1) near the interchange of the Trans-Canada Highway and the access road to Sunshine Village.
“He’s been out for almost a week travelling around, but as far as I know nobody had observed him until now,” said Ron Le Blanc, a human-wildlife conflict specialist with Banff National Park. “Now’s the time to be bear aware.”
Grizzly bears spend almost half of their lives in winter dens. On average, bears in the Rocky Mountains of Alberta spend 4.5 months of the year in or near their den sites.
According to previous research in the park, grizzly bears here almost always dig their own dens but, on occasion, will use a natural chamber such as a cave or hollow tree.
One radio-collared female with three cubs that was collared as part of the 1994-2001 Eastern Slopes Grizzly Bear Research Project used a natural rock cave for several winters.
The dens are often in places where the entrance is sheltered from strong winds and where deep snow will accumulate, providing extra insulation from the cold.
Patterns in den use will vary depending on the age of the bear and the local climate, but male grizzly bears are almost always the last to enter their den in fall and the first to emerge in spring.
Pregnant females are usually the first bears to den and the last to come out.
“Depending on the age of the cubs, the female bears could be in their dens for at least another month, or maybe a few more weeks,” said LeBlanc.
The first reported grizzly bear sighting last year was on April 2. Other first sightings of the year were March 30 in 2011, March 17 in 2010, March 24 in 2009, March 16 in 2008 and March 25 of 2007.
LeBlanc said with deep snow in the backcountry, bears coming out of their winter’s hibernation will stay in the valley bottoms in search of early season food, including combing the trains tracks for spilled grain.
“They’ll probably travel the valley bottoms and along the train tracks looking for carrion or any grain spills that might be on the tracks,” he said. “They’ll be looking for any type of food available.”
With that in mind, LeBlanc said it’s important residents store garbage properly, clean barbecues, don’t leave out dog food or empty bottles or cans and take down bird feeders – which are illegal in the national park anyway.
He said people getting out for early season hikes or bike rides should carry bear spray, travel in groups, make noise, look for signs of bears and stay alert at all times.
“We need the public to help us ensure that bears aren’t becoming habituated, especially to human food, so there is no needless destruction of habituated bears,” he said.
Report grizzly bear sightings to Banff’s dispatch at 403-762-1470.
Cutline: Bear 122, a large male grizzly bear, is the first reported bear out of the den in Banff. Photo – Amar Athwal.
