Bear necessities

No sooner did I blog about an on-line fundraiser for the Alberta Birds of Prey centre than along came another on-line fundraiser connected to farming and ranching.
A story I wrote about grizzly bears and ranchers in the Twin Butte, Alta., region led me to Cowboys and Carnivores. It’s an initiative to develop innovative solutions to conflicts with large carnivores like grizzly bears. Grizzlies are a protected species in Alberta. That means ranchers can’t harm them even if they eat crops, damage grain bins or kill livestock and pets.

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So, it is left to ranchers, Alberta Sustainable Resource Development, Bear Smart and other interested groups like the non-profit Miistakis Institute to come up with solutions that protect private property while also protecting the bears.
Nobody has a firm count on the number of grizzlies in southwestern Alberta, although efforts are underway to do so. One bear is too many when it’s in your grain bin or silage bag, but on the flip side, grizzlies are an important and valuable part of the ecosystem.
It’s a dilemma. As one source told me, everybody likes bears but nobody wants bears.
But the bears are definitely out and about in the region, and hungry because there is a paltry wild berry crop this year. Berries are favoured by grizzlies as they tank up and prepare themselves for winter hibernation. Lack of berries means they must seek other food sources. Farmsteads and ranches look like easy pickings for some.
Here is a photo of a fresh grizzly bear track, which was taken two weeks ago near Twin Butte by my sister while she was fishing. Her rod is there for size comparison purposes; the reel is three inches across.
Cowboys and Carnivores group has already undertaken projects to help ranchers reduce interaction with grizzly bears. These include dead-animal pickup bins, electric fencing around feed storage areas and calving yards and bear-proof doors for grain bins.
The group has listed itself with the Shell Fuelling Change program, which donates $1 million each year to projects and organizations that improve and restore the Canadian environment.
You can learn more about it by clicking here.
The group has been running second in the $100,000 category for several weeks, with an urban commuter challenge and a turtle migration project vying for number one.