Conservation officers put down two bears
Two wandering black bears were shot and killed in separate incidents Friday night, Environment Yukon spokesman Dennis Senger said today.
Two wandering black bears were shot and killed in separate incidents Friday night, Environment Yukon spokesman Dennis Senger said today.
Conservation officers received two reports of bears at almost the same time, at about 11 p.m., he said. One came in from the Logan subdivision and one from Cowley Creek.
Conservation officer Aaron Koss-Young responded to the Arkell complaint and found the bear in the backyard of a Finch Crescent home.
The animal began walking toward the greenbelt, but then turned and began moving toward the officer in an aggressive fashion, Senger said, adding Koss-Young made the decision to shoot the bear.
The bruin, he said, was the brown-coloured black bear seen several times last week roaming through the Copper Ridge, Logan and Arkell subdivisions.
Senior conservation officer Ryan Hennings responded to a report of a bear getting into the garbage at a Cowley Creek residence.
Hennings first shot the bear with a rubber bullet as a means of deterring its behaviour, and the bear began moving away.
When it returned to eat more garbage, the bear was shot and killed, Senger said.
He said it is believed the Cowley Creek bear was the same bear seen near the Golden Horn Elementary School last Wednesday.
Comments (15)
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BearDog on Oct 21, 2010 at 8:06 am
Sad. So Sad.
Too bad the people couldn't gather any other resources to save the bears from death.
Guess they weren't as lucky as Trevor or the wild horses
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tommy smith on Oct 21, 2010 at 5:00 am
if you don't know about the incident in Liard hotsprings then it just really tells us how much you are in touch with bear situations. Conservation officers are doing their job both ways. They are also conserving human life. Better to do away with the problem bears before someone gets hurt. They are not pets. Francois. i don't think anyone enjoys putting bears down but better to be safe than sorry.
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thingsthatmakeyougohmmmmm on Oct 21, 2010 at 4:12 am
Francis: In terms of the proof for the Liard attack google "List of Fatal Bear Attacks in North America". That particular attack was in August of 1997.
That particular bear was old and not in very good health, hence the reason it resorted to attacking humans, and perhaps not a good example here for explaining the shooting of these bears. There are several instances in NA where food conditioned bears (those that have come to rely, and in their minds "own" the garbage, have lost their fear of humans and have behaved aggressively, some to the point of contact with people. If we manage our garbage better in Whitehorse we'll have a lot fewer of these unfortunate incidents. If you are so concerned Francis perhaps you should start a Bear Smart society in the Yukon and put your concerns to good use.
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bedrock billy on Oct 20, 2010 at 2:01 pm
Francais Pilman: Well, some of us still put children before animals. A bear mauling a child may be childish and immature to you, but it does happen. And those two bears are not dead for no reason as you put it. Their deaths were justified. By the way, were you there that day? Why not talk to those who were. Oh, and Anonymous, speak for yourself. Many of us still believe humans are far superiour to animals. Show me an animal that can type.
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Francias pillman on Oct 20, 2010 at 9:00 am
Please provide proof about your claim at liard hotsprings. Even if it did happen, so what. Is that another reason why these bears should be killed? And anthony, your little childish attacks are not even remotely funny. I'm glad you try to insult me because I dare speak up for some stupid useless bears.
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thingsthatmakeyougohmmmmm on Oct 20, 2010 at 5:03 am
FrancisPillman: The reference to "garbage bears" is accurate in this case. Unfortunately the bears, in their current hyper state of trying to pack on the pounds resorted to raiding garbage and compost cans. That's not the bears fault - they don't know they are off limits and their noses got them in trouble. By the same token it is not the fault of the Conservation Officers that people don't manage their garbage/compost. Next Sunday night go take a drive around Copper Ridge and have a look at all the bins put out the night before despite all of the advice to manage your garbage. In many areas (BC for example) it is illegal to put out your bins more than a few hours before pick up just to avoid this kind of situation. Maulings are a childish excuse? Do a little research on black bear attacks and how food conditioning played a role in many of those. You're right it's a shame they had to be shot but it's also a shame when people like you do nothing but complain about the situation and point your finger at the wrong people.
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tommy smith on Oct 19, 2010 at 11:33 am
i remember years ago a black bear killed a few people at liard hotsprings and started eating them cause he was hungry. wat u think of that mr.pillman or the person who isnt going to visit alaska. who cares. stay home in your own country and dont critisize us.
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anonymous on Oct 19, 2010 at 11:14 am
Good for you Dave Downunder. By the way, Alaska is not in Canada. If you don't want to drive through here (parking your RV in the Walmart parking lot) I will be grateful. If you are not driving through here to get to Alaska then I repeat Alaska is not in Canada.
Why do we continue to think that human beings are far superior to animals? I've been around long enough to know that we are far less important than the things we choose to destroy. We are horrible.
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francas pillman on Oct 19, 2010 at 6:47 am
Yea, and its easier to label them garbage bears because it gives us a reason to kill them. We live in the Yukon, not Toronto. The argument about mauling a child is childish and immature in itself. Yet another half assed reason to justify killing these special animals. I don't care what anyone says, 2 bears are dead for no reason. You want to justify that? Fine. I understand that the majority of people don't give a dam about animals. Well, I do. I speak for them. They have no voice.
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Anthony on Oct 19, 2010 at 6:44 am
Dave Downunder: Buy yourself an atlas. Alaska is not in Canada.
Francias: I see your iron levels are still imbalanced. What would you propose as a paperwork free solution to dealing with bears habituated to garbage? A petting zoo?
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FWIW on Oct 19, 2010 at 4:03 am
If we don't want bears shot, then we need to take on the responsibility to see that we are not helping to habituate these animals.Attracting them with our habits, our waste.
Don't leave garbage out, or in a place the bear can access, learn what items we keep in our spaces that will attract bears, clean your bbq grills, keep the dog poop in your space picked up, don't stop on the side of the road to watch them, because believe me they are taking note too. They are noticing that your presence isn't something to be scared of, even though you are close to them....then they push it...and end up getting comfortable in greenbelts, in school yards, in your yard. And we all pay in the end. I would think that there is little satisfaction in killing a bear as a CO, for he knows who is to blame for that bears garbage addiction, and it is All of Us.
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Dave Downunder on Oct 19, 2010 at 3:31 am
I can't believe that you Canadians are still killing your magnificent wildlife because they wander around too much and are attracted to your food that you leave outside for them. You ought to be ashamed of yourself. I was thinking of visiting Alaska in a few years, but now I will go to New Zealand instead.
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bedrock billy on Oct 18, 2010 at 1:53 pm
Francias Pillman: How would you feel if for instance, that black bear sighted near the Golden Horn Elementary school mauled a couple of little children? Oh yes, you wouldn't have made any stupid comments then would you have? By the way, have you ever had to shoot an aggressive bear? It has to happen you know. And, by the way, its more paper work after a kill.
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DG on Oct 18, 2010 at 1:34 pm
Francias keep in mind that when they discharge their weapon their is still a lot of paperwork, instead of moving the bear to a new location they took a life. As sad as it may be he/she was a garbage bear, and once a G-bear always a G-bear.
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Francias pillman on Oct 18, 2010 at 9:09 am
Funny how I predicted this. Funny I guess my comment was not approved. How do you even have the word "Conservation" in their name. As I said before it's less paper work just to kill them. RIP to the 2 innocent bears that made the choice to wander where humans live and lost their lives because they were hungry.