Bear season was busy in the Tri-Cities this year and 11 fewer bears will be bedding down to hibernate this winter after being killed for coming into conflict with humans.
According to the Ministry of Environment, 2013 saw a return to typical bear patterns.
Eleven bears were destroyed for getting into garbage and becoming a safety risk, one was killed by a car, nine were chased out of urban areas by hazing and two cubs got sent to Critter Care for rehabilitation and return to the wild.
Those numbers are up from 2012, which saw a third fewer calls and half the number of bear deaths.
But if you think this year was bad for bruins, get used to it, the conservation officer service says. Development pressure is only going to create more bear conflicts in the future unless people get a handle on their garbage.
It's a simple equation. More people are moving into areas frequented by bears, which use wildlife corridors next to developments to get around in search of food. And "as we develop on those hillsides, absolutely we're going to see an increase in conflict," said Sgt. Steve Jacobi of the B.C. Conservation Officer Service (COS).
With bear calls up nearly 40% over last year, requiring 20% more call-outs to Tri-City neighbourhoods, the COS's Maple Ridge-based officers are stretched to the limit.
But on the good news front, cities are better at educating residents and containing garbage, Jacobi said, singling out Coquitlam for being pro-active.
While Coquitlam is developing up Burke Mountain, it's also educating residents about the problem (see sidebar), is getting a handle on its own garbage and levies stiff fines if trash is left out in the open.
"If we don't [educate and use proper containment], we're going to get more complications and issues," Jacobi said.
Here's how things stood at the end of November (see chart for details): Calls about bears to the COS were up about 40% to 2,300 this year from 1,662 in 2012; officers killed five bears in Coquitlam and three each in Port Moody and Port Coquitlam because the creatures were becoming a safety issue.
Still, there are many bears in the area, and most will be bedding down in ravines close to homes. Even without snow cover found in the mountains, these bruins - many with cubs - will find somewhere in a ravine or forested area to hibernate.
Jacobi has noticed a drop in calls (280 in November in the entire zone, down from 770 in September), which is a signal that bears are getting the hint and hibernating.
The end of salmon spawning season, which has been drawing bears to local streams, particularly in the Hoy/Scott Creek area, means there is less food around for them, and if they don't turn to garbage, they will go to sleep.
And in the spring, if garbage and other attractants are easy to get, these bears could be come a public hazard and will see their lives cut short.
Meanwhile, province-wide, only 325 black bears were killed, compared to 460 in 2012. Calls for black bear and grizzly sightings were also down, to 13,023 from 14,549 the year previous.
THE MALL BEAR
Remember that black bear spotted in the Coquitlam Centre parking lot in early September? It lived happily ever after, reports Sgt. Steve Jacobi. Apparently, the bear was successfully hazed back to a field where it usually feeds.
Hazing is a method used to steer bears away from people. Noise makers, rubber bullets and beanbag guns are used to give the bear a negative experience that it will associate with people. The bear is not hurt but hazing teaches bears to avoid people, which will help it to survive.
