Bear advocates in North 91原创 are trying to figure out where the bears are this year.
鈥淚t is a bit of an enigma, what we have going on right now,鈥� said Tony Webb of the North Shore Black Bear Network.
鈥淭his year there have been no sightings at this time,鈥� he said. 鈥淣one of us know why.鈥�
At this time in 2013, Webb said, there had been dozens of bear sightings and 29 signs were posted in parks and public areas warning people that bears were present.
This year, he said, they do not have any signs up warning people of bear problems.
A number of measures, including fines, have been put in place in North 91原创 to deter people from putting their garbage out too soon 鈥� a big attraction for bears.
As well, a strong public service campaign has hammered home the message that the bears will show up if people put out attractants.
Webb thinks those initiatives have helped educate people about keeping the bears out of their yards.
鈥淭he bulk of people are starting to get it,鈥� said Webb.
In 2012 and 2013 the berry crops higher up were very good and this summer is expected to be another good one.
With a good food supply at higher elevations, some observers suggest the bears are staying up there instead of roaming into subdivisions and getting into garbage.
Despite the positive news in North 91原创, provincial statistics from the Ministry of Environment show the conflict with bears continues to be a provincewide problem.
In April this year, there were 535 bear calls and 15 bears were destroyed province-wide, while in April 2013 there were 436 calls to conservation officers and only nine bears were destroyed.
In May 2014, 2,118 bear calls were logged with the ministry while in 2013 there were 1,705 calls. This May, 83 bears were destroyed provincewide, compared to 63 in 2013.
