The wildfires burning around the province have had a devastating effect on many people and communities; but humans are not the only ones affected. The fires have also had an impact on wildlife, says Frank Ritcey, provincial coordinator for WildSafeBC; and Ashcroft RCMP detachment commander Sgt. Kathleen Thain confirms that we are probably already seeing the effects in our area.
“There’s been a lot of displacement of bigger wildlife because of the fires,” Ritcey says. “There’s been so much real estate burnt.” He adds that a trail cam he has set up north of Kamloops Lake showed a cow elk passing through the area. “They were there pre-European settlement, but I’ve never seen one there all the time I’ve been in Kamloops.
“There’s been an immediate displacement pf animals, because of lack of food in their natural areas. Next year, though, we’ll see lots more growth, and that will benefit many animals. After a fire you see lots of food for ungulates, and berries and grass for bears.
“It’s not devastating for the animals, because Mother Nature allows them to benefit from a fire.” He adds, however, that some species that need old-growth forests for shelter during part of the winter—such as mountain goats and mountain caribou—might be hard hit. “Areas that have those species will suffer. It’s important that they have that shelter.”
As bears start to fatten up for winter (hyperphasia), there is also the fact that the hot, dry summer has left very little berry crop for them. “Bears need to eat more than 20,000 calories a day to build up enough body fat to get them through the winter,” says Ritcey. “If their traditional areas are blackened, they’ll be looking for a new food source, so they’ll come into town after fruit and garbage. It’s more important than ever to manage those attractants.
“The big thing is that people have to realize that with the fires, there’s a good possibility of seeing animals in areas they’ve not been seen in before. If a bear gets a food reward, it will keep coming back; so don’t give them that first food reward. We have to be more careful than ever.”
Thain agrees, telling The Journal that black bears have already been seen down on the Bonaparte River by the Sage and Sands Trailer Park in Cache Creek. And she confirms that on August 28, a female black bear and two cubs had to be put down by Conservation Officers in Cache Creek.
“The bears kept coming back to the same trees, and showed no fear of humans,” she says. “The Conservation Officers determined that they were habituated, and they had to be destroyed.
“Relocating grizzly bears can work, but it seldom does with black bears that have become habituated. These bears associated humans with food. We have to be careful not to attract them.”
