It’s that time of year again! Local bears wake up from their winter snooze

With Northern BC moving further into the spring season, bears are waking up from their winter slumber.

According to Dave Bakker with the Northern Bear Awareness Society, one species, in particular, tends to wander the Prince George area.

“We just happen to live in an area of the province that is a very high natural black bear habitat, and black bears are the ones we see 99% of the time,” he noted.

He says while they do occasionally see Grizzlies, they have a tendency to stay a little further West.

On average, the Prince George area receives around 800 bear complaints every year, according to the Northern Bear Awareness Society.

“We find that usually, the first bears to emerge are the adult males, they’re sort of getting a little antsy and they want to check out their territory again,” added Bakker.

The Northern Bear Ecology Centre explains that this time of year Black Bears tend to be in the 2-3 week ‘Walking Hibernation phase’, where bears voluntarily consume less food and drink than they do later in the summer.

Bakker says it is imperative that Northern BC residents take steps to keep bears out of the city limits, as that tends to be an issue around this time.

“They’re looking for those familiar food sources that they came across from last year and unfortunately it’s the residential areas that they head straight towards at this time of the year,” said Bakker.

Due to unmanaged attractants, an average of 30 bears are destroyed annually in the Prince George area according to the Northern Bear Awareness Society.

To keep bears away from the city limits, Northern BC residents should secure their garbage bins and anything that might attract the omnivores.

The BCSPCA recommends taking the following steps:

• Keep garbage, recycling and compost inside until pick-up day
• Regularly clean garbage and recycling bins, cover food compost with dry leaves or grass clippings
• Pick up ripe and fallen fruit daily, harvest ripe vegetables
• Clean barbecue grills after every use, store when not in use
• Don’t leave pet food outside or use bird feeders April to October

Bakker is hoping for some grasses and hedges that are often consumed by Black Bears to grow early on, as that typically helps alleviate the rates of bears coming into urban areas for food.

For more information on bear-proofing your home, visit the Northern Bear Awareness Society and Get Bear Smart Society websites.