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The information below is a compilation of bear information provided by government agencies and unconfirmed sightings reported by the public over the last week. It is not intended to be used as a real-time, complete record of where bears are in the valley.
BEAR ACTIVITY UPDATE (Nov.14-21, 2024)
(Banff National Park East Gate to Bow Valley Provincial Park)
There have not been any recent bear sightings in the Bow Valley, and GPS data is showing that all of the female collared grizzly bears in Kananaskis Country have gone into their dens. That being said, there could still be a few bears out and about on the landscape still preparing to enter their dens and they have one thing on their mind: food, food and more food. These bears may be distracted while they forage, so it’s especially important to stay bear aware and don’t become complacent out on the trails. Make noise, travel in groups, and always be aware of your surroundings (look for tracks in the snow). Remember to carry bear spray year-round in an easily accessible location (not in your backpack), know how to use it and use it if required. Bear spray is also effective against wildlife which are active year-round such as cougars, wolves, coyotes and elk.
Hunters need to be aware and cautious as they are intentionally quiet on the landscape and they should always be carrying bear spray. If you are recreating, please remain alert of your surroundings and avoid dead animals.
The elk rut is over but numerous elk continue to be seen all throughout town, which means you have to be alert and you may have to choose an alternate route while out for a walk/run/ride. Give plenty of space to ALL ELK (at least 30 metres or 3 bus lengths) and do not try to sneak past them on the trail! Never approach elk for ANY reason and keep your pets on a leash.
Archive photo of a grizzly bear out in the snow. Grizzly bears such as this one could still be out and about on the landscape!
The whole community has a responsibility in removing wildlife attractants such as fruit (on trees and on the ground), garbage, pet food, bird feeders, compost, and greasy bbqs to keep people and wildlife safe!
If you have a fruit tree, such as a crabapple (including ornamental crabapples), mountain ash or chokecherry - picking fruit every year is a lot of work so the recommended long-term solution is to remove your fruit tree. In Canmore you can get cash back for removing fruit trees from your yard! There is still plenty of money remaining in the budget this year for the Town of Canmore’s Fruit Tree Removal Incentive Program so we urge you to consider removing your fruit tree now while the funds are available!
VIEW CURRENT WARNINGS AND CLOSURES
You can also submit your report using the Report-A-Poacher Online form or contact your local district Fish and Wildlife office.
SOME THINGS TO ‘BEAR’ IN MIND
Even though the bears have or will enter their dens soon, there are still many species that do not hibernate (i.e. cougars, wolves, coyotes, deer and elk) that you need to be aware of and prepared to encounter while out on the trails. Here are some good reminders to consider when recreating during the winter months. Trail users should carry bear spray year-round, try to recreate in a group (as opposed to going out alone) and try to recreate during daylight hours as cougars are most active at dawn, dusk and at night. This can be tricky during the winter months as darkness comes earlier than usual...all the more reason to carry a good head-lamp and do your best to go out in a group as there is safety in numbers! It is also best to keep your dogs on a leash and if you are not able to do that, consider leaving them at home to give tired elk and deer some peace and quiet and time to recover from the busy and stressful rutting season.
Cougar in the snow. Archived photo courtesy of Alberta Forestry & Parks.
Holiday decorations, loose and low-hanging cords, lights, and wires can become tangled in the antlers of deer, elk, and moose which can be dangerous, causing injuries or exhaustion. If entangled, the animal is often unable to untangle from the obstruction itself. Parks Canada recommends that residents and business owners walk their property and remove items that could potentially result in a wildlife entanglement incident. To protect these animals:
Secure lights to buildings instead of trees (especially within 10 feet of the ground).
Ensure strings of lights are secured tightly to buildings so they don’t sag, and avoid stringing lights between multiple trees or across open spaces (when strings of lights are wrapped around low bushes, elk and deer may get their antlers tangled in them).
Consider using cord-free decorations.
Use timers to conserve energy and preserve the night sky.
After the holidays, remove lights and decorations promptly.
Keeping wildlife wild is a shared responsibility. Let's make it a safe and happy holiday season for everyone, including our wildlife friends!
WILDLIFE IN THE NEWS
Bear, cougar sightings more common in Calgary as city sprawls into wildlife territory.
Call to secure attractants renewed after bear fatally hit by vehicle in Sooke, B.C.
Public urged to stay away from orphan bear cubs that fled high into a tree in Sooke, B.C.
In the polar bear capital of the world, a community lives with the predator and loves it.
Truth or bear: Reducing grizzly confrontations on the ranch.
Bear spotted in Gatlinburg candy store prompts warning from wildlife officials.
Bear shot and killed by homeowner in Southern California mountain community.
Lower Similkameen Indian Band work with local partners to properly honour black bears killed on roadways.
Insurers say bear that damaged luxury cars was actually a person in a costume.
Get away grizzly, why scientists are chasing bears with drones.
How a fatal bear attack led an Italian community to rally against rewilding.
Abbotsford, B.C., man guilty of trafficking in bear parts fined $8,600.
Wyoming Experts Say Safety Rules Ignored In Bear Release That Ended In Attack in Armenia.
WILDLIFE AMBASSADOR WORDS OF WISDOM
"BUSTING BEAR MYTHS" BY DEREK RYDER, WILDLIFE AMBASSADOR
Myth: Bears hibernate.
Fact: Maybe, but maybe not. The research is ongoing. Hibernation is defined as a state of greatly reduce metabolic activity and lowered body temperature. “Normal” hibernators have body temperatures approaching 0° C, and almost not detectible heart or brain activity. They can’t “wake up”. Bears aren’t like that. Their body temperature drops only 3°-5°. Moms give birth and nurse in February while they are “hibernating”.
The better current term for the state bears enter into is “torpor”. Torpor is more like just a deep sleep. The heart and respiration slow a bit, but the brain is up and active. Just like you and me, however, no matter how deep a sleep we’re in, things can wake us up. So it is with bears. A warm snap, people skiing by, or giving birth, and bears wake up, albeit groggily.
We start feeling tired before we go to bed. So do bears. Research from Norway shows that bears start to slow down their metabolism up to a month before they den. And, just like us, their metabolism starts to “wake up” almost a month before they officially “wake up” and emerge from their dens.
Still, biologists are now starting to consider what bears do a type of hibernation. The line is still a bit blurry, but it’s better for us to think of their state as the deep sleep of torpor than the near comatose-state of hibernation.
Modern day hibernation (or more accurately “Torpor”) for bears…
FOOD FOR THOUGHT?
Please ensure that your yards are free of ALL attractants so that bears do not find anything to eat and subsequently get into trouble! As a reminder, please do not put out bird feeders yet as they could potentially attract bears into your yard. In Canmore, bird feeders are not allowed to be used during bear season between April 1 to November 30.
Living in the Bow Valley means wildproofing your property. Patios and crawl spaces under sheds or stairs are attractive hiding or denning places for cougars, foxes, bears, coyotes, and other animals. Proactive prevention is the best way to keep carnivores from taking up residence in your residence.
Blocking holes and covering access to hiding places will keep your pets and neighbours safe, and could prevent the need to relocate or kill habituated wild animals. Spring is the best time to wild-proof your property, with an extra check before winter.
Follow these tips to avoid attracting animal guests:
Board up open spaces under decks or patios or close them off with durable wire mesh.
Install motion-activated security lights if possible. They may help frighten away carnivores.
Keep cats indoors and bring dogs inside at night. If your dog is outside unsupervised in the day, make sure they’re in a secure, covered kennel.
If you see a cougar or other wildlife in the Banff town site, call Parks Canada at 403-762-1470. To report a cougar or any aggressive wildlife in Canmore, call Kananaskis Dispatch (KES) at 403-591-7755.
Keep animals out by wildlife proofing your property!
AND NOW SOME PAWS-ITIVE NEWS
WOW! THANK YOU to all who attended and supported our Square Dance fundraiser last Friday. We had an absolute blast getting together and dancing with our wonderful community. It was a sold out event of 150 people dancing the night away to the fantastic music by the 7-piece band Hip to be Square Collective, all led by our fearless square dance caller, Leslie Gotfrit!
Click here to watch a fun instagram video Reel from the event.
Thanks again to Cornerstone Theatre and Wild Life Distillery for their generous sponsorship of the event as well as all of our amazing silent auction donors. Thank you also to Carter-Ryan Gallery, Flying Pigs Environmental Services, Stonewaters and Arctos & Bird for their sponsorship donations too! See you next year - mark your calendars for Friday November 21, 2025!
Fire in the Hole! Square Dancers in action on Nov.15!
The Biosphere Institute staff wants to thanks all those who attended and donated!
UPCOMING EVENTS
November 26 - Historical Perspectives on Captive Wild Animals
The Bow Valley Naturalists invite you to join them on Tuesday, November 26 for this ONLINE ONLY program “Historical Perspectives on Captive Wild Animals: the Case of Quebec’s Captive Zoo Polar Bears, 1936-1942” with George Colpitts. This free Zoom online only presentation is from 7:30-9pm - Click here to register now!
Whether in nature or in captivity, wild animals are imagined differently in changing historical circumstances by humans. Join historian George Colpitts from the University of Calgary as he presents an archival 1940 educational film showing Quebec's famous/infamous zoo polar bears. Between 1936 and 1942, three polar bears from Devon Island in Canada's Arctic gained international fame as performance divers at the Charlesbourg Zoo. The bears' life history, public presentation and tragic deaths suggest the ways that humans often gain affection in animals, especially those from the wild, when they feel they have dominated those very animals in their close proximity or captivity.
November 30 - Living Sustainably Series III: Cochrane Sustainability Expo
The Cochrane Environmental Action Committee (CEAC) is excited to present, Living Sustainably Series III, the third series of presentations for Cochrane area residents. The first session will be the Cochrane Sustainability Expo on Saturday, November 30 from 10:30am - 1:00pm at the Frank Wills Memorial Hall (405 – 1st Street East, Cochrane). These information sessions are free to attend but registration is required. Register here now!
Learn all about Zero Waste & Reuse with guest speaker Carla Bitz presenting at 10:30am and then have time to meet local sustainability vendors such as The Refillery, the Cochrane Public Library with their Special Equipment Lending Library, the Helping Hands Food Rescue Program, and more!
Speaker: Carla Bitz (she/her) is the Environmental Coordinator in the Environment & Sustainability department at the Town of Banff. Carla coordinates the Town of Banff’s zero waste and circular economy initiatives, which support the Town’s goal to divert 70% of waste by 2028 and ultimately send zero waste to landfill.
Join us with Dawn Byford in the Friends Program Room at the Canmore Public Library for a fun and unique Earth Talk on Monday, December 9 from 7-8pm. Dawn Byford, plant-based cook & educator, will be leading an exploration of one of the most delicious ways we can each mitigate climate change and improve human health...even during the holidays! Learn practical tips and simple recipes. There will be a mini cooking demo and tastings included.
There are only 25 spots available! Registration is required with a suggested donation of $20+processing fee.
Please remember BEARS CAN BE ENCOUNTERED ANYWHERE, ANYTIME!
Report any sightings of a bear, cougar, wolf or any aggressive wildlife in Kananaskis Country or the Bow Valley to Kananaskis Dispatch at 403.591.7755