Over halfway through 2010 and one could argue that bears are trying to destroy their teddy bear image through various bear attacks and snarling close encounters.
For or against, these occurrences have many people talking about the cancellation of Ontario’s spring bear hunt. A lost hunting opportunity that many hunters felt was politically motivated. It was a management tool that developed a healthy fear of man in bears and helped to minimize encounters like those shared in this post. It did NOT mean the end of Ontario’s bears. Nobody wanted that!
Those against a bear hunt are being ‘treated’ with more bear sightings, bear attacks, property damage  and other close encounters.
Anecdotally, through sources close to Muskoka Outdoors, some Huntsville residents have been having some close encounters.
One man was working outside his house when he came face to face with a bear. After repeated attempts to scare the  bear off, the man went back inside his house, with the bear following, to get his firearm. When the man exited his house with gun in hand – the bear bolted away.
In a second, different encounter, one woman returned back into her kitchen to find a bear in her kitchen. It had come in through a screen door.
Then, there was this past spring. Â In less than one month, three separate aggressive bear encounters have been reported in the area of Orillia, ON. One of the attacks was nearly fatal, while the other two were ‘charges’ and acts of aggression.
Listed below are accounts of the encounters from various sources:
1. Mauling victim gives chilling account of bear attack
2. ATV rider charged by black bear
3. Woman on bike chased by black bear near Orillia, ON
Recently, there have been other bear attacks in Canada and internationally:
1. Canadian woman recounts bear attack (Montana)
2. Bear killed after biting man’s arm (Colorado)
3. Port Alberni bear attack sends two to hospital (BC)
4. Yellowstone Bear Attack KILLS Camper, Injures Two
It’s getting more difficult to buy into the ‘rarity’ of hostile bear encounters and attacks. Clean BBQ grills, bear ‘proof’ garbage containers and call lines might fool humans into a sense of safety, but ‘Smokey’ the bear’s identity is lost in the reality of the Canadian rural setting.
Live trapping bears might make sense – until they end up in your back yard or mine. If we are going continue with this tool – I hope those involved are getting DNA samples of the bears that are re-released to make sure they are not repeat offenders. It will also give human victims a means to trace who released a potential risk to back to the wild.
At some point, increasing hunting opportunities, in conjunction with a science-based management plan, will need to be considered to start minimizing risks to humans. It could be a tough pill to swallow for anti-hunting groups.
It is more heart breaking for me to see a human become a causality of the ‘business-end’ of a bear.










