'Don't have the headphones on': Safety urged as B.C. bears emerge from hibernation

Officials are urging residents to be alert and secure their garbage bins as B.C.'s bears wake up from their winter hibernation over the coming weeks.

There are between 120,000 and 150,000 black bears in the province, according to advocacy group WildSafeBC, and the dozy bears start getting more active in the spring after months of sleep.

Wildlife safety advocates and conservation officers are urging residents to be aware of their surroundings when out in the woods.

The City of Kamloops is rolling out a program to offer bear-resistant garbage bins throughout the city, as officials and advocates say unsecured garbage bins are the primary cause of human-bear conflict.

"Especially now it's spring, and people have been holed up in their house ... they want to kind of go out, do yard work," said Dan Milokay, a co-ordinator with WildSafeBC in Maple Ridge, B.C. "They'll leave the garage door open as they're working in the yard.

"The bear smells the garbage, comes into the garage and ... grabs some food like a lasagna and runs out, eats it. And then they come back for more."

Milokay says that bears who have been habituated to human food can try to rip open garage doors and break windows once they want to get their reward.

But the advocate says the number of bears getting killed in Maple Ridge has been going down over the last decade, which he attributed to more education and safety efforts.

"Don't have the headphones on or going through the park looking at your cell. Be aware of the surroundings," Milokay advised.

The advocate said that, in addition to looking for trails and claw marks, British Columbians should listen for the sound of animals like crows when they're out in the backcountry.

"Crows are almost like nature's drones," he said. "They will change their caw in order to warn the small ground animals, like squirrels and stuff, that a predator is in the area. They need to hide.

"As long as you're walking and you're listening and you're kind of knowing that, 'Oh, that sounds different than what I'm used to them sounding like,' then that puts you on alert."

According to numbers collected by the B.C. Conservation Officer Service, a total of 303 black bears were killed last year, a drop from 603 in 2023.

Between 500 and 600 are generally killed most years, with the highest number recorded being 632 in 2019.