A Canadian metropolis that was lately evacuated because of the risk of wildfires has been overrun by bears that swooped in to feed on the trash left behind when folks deserted their properties.
On Aug. 16, Yellowknife in Canada’s Northwest Territories was evacuated as wildfires blazed by way of a lot of the encompassing space and got here to inside about 9 miles (15 kilometers) of town’s border. Round 95% of Yellowknife’s roughly 20,000 residents left town, whereas some key employees stayed behind, CBC Information reported.
Round every week after Yellowknife was evacuated, those that remained seen an uncommon variety of black bears (Ursus americanus) wandering the streets, CTV Information reported. Since then, the variety of bear sightings has steadily elevated, however there aren’t any official statistics for what number of bears are actually within the metropolis.
Video footage shared by BBC Information reveals bears exploring folks’s gardens, strolling within the street, rummaging by way of landfill and chasing a person right into a resort.
The bears are doubtless being drawn to town as a result of most individuals left their trash cans stuffed with waste, that means there’s a number of free meals for the bears to eat, James Williams, a Northwest Territory wildlife officer who has been patrolling town in quest of the bears, advised CTV Information. Nevertheless, the wildfires have additionally doubtless performed a job in “pushing the bears” away from their pure territories and towards Yellowknife, he added.
The variety of bears sighted in Yellowknife usually will increase round this time of yr. Earlier in August, two bears have been shot and killed by wildlife officers in Yellowknife after posing a danger to residents’ security, after one in all them tried to interrupt right into a home. And across the identical time final yr, folks have been warned to remain off trails across the metropolis after residents encountered a lot of bears, a few of which confirmed little to no concern towards people.
Wildfires might change how wildlife officers take care of the bears. Usually, officers use deterrents, reminiscent of bear spray and rubber bullets, to scare the bears out of city. When that fails, bears are captured and launched far exterior town. However the wildfires will make it tougher to launch the bears again into the wild, Williams mentioned. In consequence, there’s a likelihood that extra bears might should be euthanized.
“Our primary precedence is to guard life and property of the folks and metropolis of Yellowknife and as a territory as an entire, and when it comes right down to it, generally we do should dispatch a few of these animals,” Williams mentioned. But when they do find yourself having to kill a number of the bears, it is going to be “in a most respectful manner as attainable,” he added.