Wildlife Sightings and Information

Bears can smell food from great distances - even farther than dogs can.

The best way to keep bears alive is to prevent them from gaining access to attractants—which may be plants or non-natural food sources.

Help manage bear attractants

At home

• Store garbage, recycling and organic waste (compost) in a secure building (not on your patio or porch).
• If you have curbside collection, only put the containers our on the morning of collection day - never the night before. Make sure recyclables have been cleaned.
• Burn barbeques clean and remove all grease and food scraps after every use
• Feed pets inside and store pet food indoors.
• Use non-citronella products to deter insects.
• Use an aluminum hot tub cover

In your yard

• Plant non-bear attractant plants in your garden.
• Remove bird feeders during bear season.
• If you have a backyard compost, use a bear-proof composter.
• Pick fruit a few days before ripe or before it becomes extra fragrant.
• Clean any fallen fruit. If you are planning to be away, ask a friend or neighbour to collect fruit.
• Keep lawns mowed and weeded (grasses, dandelion and clover are natural bear foods).

What are wildlife attractants?

Some typical wildlife attracts are:

• Food
• Edible products
• Pet food
• Seed
• Compost (other than grass clippings, leaves or branches)
• Grease
• Oil
• Antifreeze
• Paint
• Petroleum products

Other attractants in and around homes include garbage, recyclables, fruit trees, berry bushes, vegetable gardens, bird feeders, barbeques, citronella candles and even hot tub covers.

Everyone should keep these items secured and away from bears. Homeowners should ensure renters learn how to manage attractants.

Bear attractant plants

If you have fruit bearing trees or shrubs, ensure you remove the fruit as soon as it begins to ripen.

The following bear-attractant plants are particularly attractive to bears:

• Sorbus aucuparia (Mountain Ash, single stem tree)
• Sorbus sitchensis (Mountain Ash, shrub, multi-stem)
• Vaccinium (blueberries & huckleberries)
• Clover

It’s normal to be frightened when you encounter a bear. The reality is that most encounters with bears rarely lead to aggressive behaviour and attacks are even rarer. Remember, most bears prefer to avoid contact with humans, and any bear you do see is probably just as frightened as you are!

The best way to prevent an unpleasant bear encounter is to avoid them altogether.

How to avoid a bear encounter

Follow these tips to avoid bear encounters and help keep bears and people safe.

• Avoid moving through bear habitat silently or alone—instead, travel in groups and make noise.
• Avoid walking or biking on trails at dawn and dusk.
• Do not stop on the side of the road to view bears.
• Never feed or approach a bear. Keep your distance, back away slowly and leave the area.
• Manage your garbage and recycling, so bears can't access it. Put all garbage and recycling in wildlife-proof containers or enclosures.
• Manage other attractants, such as barbeques, bird feeders and fruit and berry bushes. Keep them clean or out of reach, so they don't tempt bears to hang around human-inhabited areas.
• Keep your dog on a leash. Dogs can provoke defensive and dangerous behaviour in bears

The main reason a bear will come near your home or place of work is for garbage, recycling or other food sources.

It is very important to secure garbage and recycling in a wildlife-proof manner and keep other bear attractants clean and/or out of reach.

What to do if you encounter a bear

Understanding the bear's behaviour can help how you decide to react in a defensive or aggressive encounter.

Know what to do in case of an encounter.

The main reason a bear will come near your home or place of work is for garbage, recycling or other food sources.

It is very important (and it’s the law in Whistler) to secure garbage and recycling in a wildlife proof manner and to keep all other bear attractants clean and/or out of reach.

Help keep Whistler's bears and people safe by following these tips:

Never feed or approach a bear. Keep your distance, back away slowly and leave the area. Stay at least 100 m away from bears at all times. Avoid encounters.

Always manage your garbage and recycling, so that bears can’t access it. Put all garbage and recycling in wildlife-proof containers or enclosures, and ensure bins and buildings are always tightly closed or locked. Regularly wash all bins.

 Never leave food, garbage or recycling in your vehicle. Bears have a very strong sense of smell and can easily break into vehicles.

Manage attractants such as barbeques, pet food, bird feeders and fruit and berry bushes. Keep them clean or out of reach, so they don’t tempt bears to hang around human-inhabited areas.

Spring and fall are critical times to manage your attractants, as food is limited and bears are especially hungry.

Keep your dog on a leash. Dogs can provoke defensive and dangerous behaviour in bears.

Hike in groups. If hiking one of the parks in Highlands – it is safest to hike in a group - keep your group close together and make lots of noise while moving through trails.

Do not stop on the side of the road to view bears. If you see a bear while driving, slow down, but do not impede traffic flow to stop or view bears. Stopping creates unsafe driving conditions and can stress a bear by disrupting their eating pattern. Never get out of your car to view a bear on the side of the road.

Understanding bear behaviour will lead to fewer human-bear conflicts.

Behaviour

Knowing what to do in the case of a bear encounter depends on reading the bear's behaviour—which can be predictable.

Understanding bear behaviour is an essential part of creating safe environments for both bears and people. More often than not, bear behaviour is misinterpreted. People all too often interpret what a bear does in terms of their own fear. To truly understand bear behaviour, you must interpret bear postures and vocalizations in terms of what the bear fears.

Bear behaviour can be predictable. The more you can learn about bears and how they behave, the less likely you will be to have a negative encounter or misinterpret interactions.

Bears are predictable. In fact, bears are usually more predictable than people. If you learn more about bears and how to interpret their behaviour, you will be able to react appropriately when you see them and avoid a negative encounter.

Read more bout bear behaviour.

Food and Diet

Although bears are a part of the Carnivora family, they are actually omnivores and sometimes 90 per cent of their diet is plant-based. They are often viewed as food opportunists. The meat they eat is often carrion (leftover carcass). Their food sources are very seasonal.

Example of some common food sources for bears:

• young plants in spring
• carrion (leftover carcass)
• insects
• berries
• mountain ash
• skunk cabbage roots

Garbage, birdfeed, and pet food are not a part of bears' natural diet. Do your part to keep these items out of their menu options.

Seasonal Dietary Needs

Bears spend most of their time perusing a patchwork of habitats throughout the year, feeding on vegetation, insects and other more reliable, though lower calorie food sources. Plant foods make up the majority of a bear’s diet – sometimes as much as 90 per cent.  However, fish and meat are important sources of protein and fat. 

When bears emerge from their dens in the spring, food is in short supply. Although bears are hungry, most trees and shrubs won’t leaf for another month and only the grasses have begun to green up. At this time of year, they are often found foraging on sunny, south-facing slopes where they can find overwintered berries or scavenge for winter-killed deer.

The first green grasses and sedges often sprout right at the edges of streams or in open wetland meadows, which also makes these areas attractive. Coastal bears find a milder reception, especially along low-elevation wetlands. They feed on the roots of skunk cabbage and sedges, or where they can find them, the well-cured carcasses of salmon that died the previous fall after spawning (Goldstream – Finlayson Arm). Because food is relatively scarce during spring, bears continue to lose weight until well into June.

Poor berry years place additional pressure on bears to find alternative food sources, as berries are one of their main sources of food.  It is important to always manage your attractants properly, please be hyper vigilant during these times.

This Myth buster sheet is from: Get Bear Smart Society

Bears are intelligent and resourceful wild mammals that deserve our respect.   A greater knowledge of the ecology, behavior and habitat needs of bears is crucial if we are to learn to co-exist.

Myth #1: Bears are unpredictable

Fact:   Bears use body language and vocalizations to show their intentions. Learning about bear behaviour can be beneficial to people who live or recreate in bear country.

Myth #2: Bears can’t run down hill

Fact: Bears can run more than 60 kilometers an hour, and they can do it up hills, down hills or along a slope. To put that in perspective, that’s 15 m/sec or 50 ft/sec – more than twice as fast as we can run. In fact, a bear can outrun a racehorse over short distances but has little endurance.

Myth #3: A bear standing on its hind legs is about to charge

Fact: Actually, a bear standing on its hind legs is just trying to better identify what has caught its attention. As I’m sure you’ll agree, it’s much easier to see, hear and smell things from a standing position, than down on all fours.

Myth #4: Once a bear has tasted human food, he won’t eat wild food any more

Fact: Bears prefer natural, wild food unless it is difficult to find and human food is too easy to get. Even the worst food-conditioned bears still eat natural foods whenever they’re plentiful. Conflicts usually increase when natural foods run out – a good time to be more vigilant of bear attractants on your property; such as bird feed, pet food, fruit trees/berry bushes, barbecue grease and compost. Learn more about how to become Bear Smart.

Myth #5: Bear bells are the best way to avoid a surprise encounter

Fact: It’s best to alert bears of your presence by talking loudly, singing songs or breaking sticks. Try to hike in a group, on established trails, during daylight hours. Visit the Play section for more information.

Myth #6: If a bear charges you, climb a tree.

Fact: Despite all their timidness on the ground, black bears seem to feel more courageous in trees. Bears sometimes kill each other by throwing their opponents out of trees. Visit the Play section for more information.

Myth #7: Bears are carnivores.

Fact: Although classified in the order carnivora, grizzly and black bears are omnivores because they eat both plants and animals. Only a small percentage of their diet consist of meat, which includes fish, insects and other mammals (the exact percentage is dependent on the type of food that is available in their habitat).

Myth #8: Bears have poor eyesight

Fact: Bears see in colour and have good vision similar to humans. Their night vision is excellent and they are particularly attuned to detecting movement. Like many animals, bears’ eyes have a reflective layer called the tapetum lucidum lining the back of the eyeball. This layer reflects light back through the retina, allowing light to stimulate light-sensitive cells in the retina a second time, thereby improving night vision. This is what gives dogs, cats and many nocturnal animals that distinct, bright green eyeshine when they are flashed with a light at night.

Myth #9: Bears that wander into inhabited areas such as campsites, rural towns or cottage communities are dangerous

Fact: It is nearly impossible for a bear to make its daily excursions without walking through someone’s private property. Bears may travel hundreds of kilometres in their search for food. If you have stored your food and garbage properly, the bear will likely move on. Remember, problem bears aren’t born, they’re created through mismanagement of human food and garbage. If bears are hanging around, something is attracting them. Removing the attraction will usually solve the problem.

Myth #10: Shooting or relocating a ‘nuisance’ bear will solve the problem

Fact: Removing the bear and not the attractant will only create an opportunity for another bear to move in, creating a vicious cycle of conflict and killing.

Myth #11: Carrying a rifle is safer than bear pepper spray

Fact: A person’s chance of incurring serious injury from a charging grizzly doubles when bullets are fired versus when bear pepper spray is used (Dr. Stephen Herrero). Those injured defending themselves with bear pepper spray experienced shorter attacks and less severe injuries than those who chose to use firearms (US Fish and Wildlife Service). Read the full report. Bears are actually attracted to pepper spray residue if it is sprayed on the ground or on objects. Never spray it around a tent or on yourself. When used defensively, pepper spray must be sprayed directly in the attacking bear’s eyes or nose. View more information.

Myth #12: One of the most dangerous encounters is getting between a mother black bear and her cubs

Fact: Because black bears can tree their cubs, it is rare for them to attack a person in defence of cubs. However, if you are anywhere near a mother grizzly’s cubs, she might very well perceive you as a threat. The chances are good that she will just bluff charge and stop well short of physical contact. You need to do whatever you can to show her that you are not a threat, otherwise the consequences could be tragic. Be quiet, make yourself smaller and retreat.

Myth #13: People traveling in bear country are often attacked

Fact: Bear attacks are extremely rare. Although there are thousands of human-bear encounters every year, only a very few result in personal injury. Most bears will actually retreat before you are even aware of their presence. It is still important, however, to stay alert and know what to do. 

Myth #14: It is dangerous to go into bear country when menstruating

Fact: Current evidence suggests that menstruation does not increase the likelihood of an attack by a black or grizzly bear, but tampons are recommended over pads. They may be disposed of by burning and then packing out the remains.

Myth #15: Play dead during an attack.

Fact: Playing dead will work if you’re being attacked by a mother grizzly defending her cubs. But it is the wrong thing to do if you’re being attacked by a predatory bear. If a bear attacks (particularly a black bear) in an offensive manner and physical contact is made, fight for your life. Kick, punch, hit the bear with rocks or sticks or any improvised weapon you can find. A predatory bear usually stalks its prey and attacks from behind. It is often silent and the bear does not exhibit any defensive behaviors like huffing or slapping the ground. Its ears may be laid back and its head held low, with its intent focused directly on you. Visit our Play section for more information.