‘This was a legal hunt and no investigation is underway,’ says B.C.
Conservation Officer Service

The Canadian Press Posted: Sep 28, 2017 3:56 PM MT Last Updated: Sep 28,
2017 6:07 PM MT

Bear 148, seen here in an undated handout photo, was killed Sunday in the
McBride region of British Columbia by a hunter with a guide.
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rivatives/16x9_620/bear-148-profile-20170727.jpg>

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Bear 148 moved from Bow Valley to remote area north of Jasper

The hunter that killed a notorious female grizzly bear in B.C. after the
bear wandered into the province from Alberta knew the animal was wearing a
research tracking collar but shot it anyway.

The Alberta government had moved the grizzly, known as Bear 148, in July
from its home range in a popular developed area west of Calgary to a remote
park north of Jasper to protect public safety.

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The grizzly, which is a threatened species in Alberta, hadn’t hurt anyone
but had gotten too close to people too many times around the Canmore and
Banff area.

The B.C. Conservation Officer Service said the bear was shot on Sunday in
the McBride region by a non-resident hunter who was with a guide.

“The guide and hunter knew that the bear was collared prior to harvest,” the
service said in an email. “This was a legal hunt and no investigation is
underway.”

According to B.C.’s hunting and trapping guide, hunters are advised to not
avoid shooting tagged or collared animals, unless specified, to ensure
biologists get accurate data on mortality rates.

Hunters who kill a tagged animal are asked to report it.

No information on the hunter was given.

Bear closures
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rivatives/original_620/bear-closures.jpg>

Last month, B.C. announced it would end the grizzly bear trophy hunt as of
Nov. 30, saying it is inconsistent with the values of most British
Columbians.

Brett Boukall, a senior wildlife biologist with Alberta Environment, said
data from Bear 148’s tracking collar suggests the grizzly had not been a
problem before it was killed.

“It was kind of being the perfect bear doing bear things away from people,”
he said. “To my knowledge, there had been no reports of any conflicts.”

After the bear was relocated in July, it wandered around its new range in
the northern Alberta wilderness.

Bear crossed into B.C. Friday

The tracking data suggests it crossed into B.C. on Friday after a storm
dumped snow in the region, perhaps making it more difficult for it to find
food, Boukall said. It was wandering toward the Fraser River when it was
shot.

“Myself and my colleagues felt disappointed that this has occurred, but at
the same time recognized that this is something that is a part of being a
bear in today’s busy landscape with the ability for legal harvest on the
B.C. side,” he said.

Conservationists are concerned about the death of Bear 148, which was
nearing the age to have cubs.

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Candace Batycki of the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative said the
fact the bear had to be relocated from its home range in the highly
developed Bow Valley west of Calgary shows how difficult it is for grizzlies
to survive.

Batycki said more must be done to protect them.

“Bear 148 was not in a protected area when she was killed but she was in
grizzly bear habitat,” she said. “Her death highlights the need for
collaborative cross-border conversation between B.C. and Alberta.”

Bear death a case of bad timing

Alberta Environment Minister Shannon Phillips called the death of Bear 148 a
case of bad timing.

“The new government has not moved forward with their regulations yet because
they are new and the grizzly hunt remains legal across the border in British
Columbia.”

There are about 700 grizzly bears in Alberta. It has been illegal to hunt
grizzlies in the province since 2006.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/bear-148-tracking-collar-hunter-kill-1
.4312369

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1.4312369>

<http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/bear-148-tracking-collar-hunter-kill–
1.4312369> Bear 148 hunter knew bear was wearing tracking collar before kill

http://www.cbc.ca

The hunter that killed a notorious female grizzly bear in B.C. after the
bear wandered into the province from Alberta knew the animal was wearing a
research tracking collar but shot it anyway.