Texada Island residents aim to relocate grizzly deemed to pose 'serious threat'
A group of Texada Island residents is trying to relocate a grizzly that the province says poses a “serious threat to public safety.”
The adult male grizzly with a yellow ear tag was first spotted in Shehtekwahn Bay, across from Powell River, on May 25.
The qathet (Powell River) Regional District said the bear swam to Texada that day or the day before after spending about a week in the Powell River area.
Since then, the bear has been spotted a few times by island residents.
The last known sighting of the bear was Sunday, near Rock Island Farm, a 10-acre property where Katrin Glenn-Bittner has lived and raised horses and cattle for 15 years.
Glenn-Bittner said though she hasn’t seen the bear herself, her partner took a photo of tracks that look like they are from the grizzly.
“The only reason my partner noticed the track is because of my son, Cody. He came to me at about 8:30 in the evening, and said, ‘Mom, the horses are acting weird.’ ”
Glenn-Bittner said her horses were unusually alert and anxious, likely because the bear was around.
She took to social media this week to write that that her partner, Kelly Hughes, and her brother David Bittner — a biologist, bear guide and photographer who lives in Switzerland but frequently visits Alaska — are working on a relocation plan for the bear, which they’ve dubbed “Tex.”
“My brother is in contact with two wildlife experts from the University of Victoria to get Tex the Bear GPS collared and relocated once more to a suitable wilderness area where he can hopefully safely remain in the wild,” wrote Glenn-Bittner.
The grizzly was relocated twice last year, according to the Ministry of Environment and Parks.
According to Glenn-Bittner, the Texada residents have asked conservation officers to give them time to raise $20,000 to $30,000 for a GPS collar for the bear and to pay for the relocation plan.
Glenn-Bittner said the bear, “which has not caused any serious incidents,” deserves a chance to survive, noting she launched a Facebook page “where people can follow and monitor our plan of action.”
She is urging island residents to make their properties and homes as unattractive to a bear as possible.
In an emailed statement, the Ministry of Environment and Parks said it is aware of the plan to privately fund the relocation of a grizzly bear, but says it is not sanctioned by the Conservation Officer Service or the province.
A ministry spokesperson noted that conservation officers and provincial wildlife biologists have worked together throughout the “conflict history” of the bear, which “poses a serious threat to public safety.”
The ministry said in the statement that human-wildlife conflict response guidelines will be followed for the grizzly, and conservation officers will continue to respond as necessary to ensure public safety.
Glenn-Bittner said she and her brother were born in Switzerland, a country that was thought to be bear-free. But bears have returned, with mixed reviews from residents.
“It’s a similar story to what’s going on in Texada,” she said. “We have a return of bears into Switzerland now as well, so there are a lot of people who need to be educated.”
She said Texada is known to be predator-free, but that could change over time. Instead of demonizing the animal, she hopes folks can start to understand bear behaviour in order to not fear them.
“I talked to my brother on Saturday morning, and that’s when he got this whole thing rolling,” said Glenn-Bittner. “He said, ‘We need to be proactive’ — the only reason why we’re doing this is because conservation officers have relocated Tex twice already.”
Anyone who sees the grizzly can report it to the RAPP line at 1-877-952-7277.
Katrin Glenn-Bittner took to social media to write that her partner and brother are working on a relocation plan for the bear. The province says that plan is not sanctioned
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