Orphaned grizzly cubs must survive on their own
Banff's best-known bear killed by train

CanWest News Service
Sunday, August 21, 2005

CALGARY -- Three orphaned bear cubs will have to fend for themselves after Banff's best-known grizzly was killed by a CP Rail train Friday morning.

The bear cubs will face an uphill battle for survival, but Parks Canada officials believe leaving them in the wild is better than human intervention.

Their mother, a 10-year-old sow known as Bear 66, was hit by a freight train while feeding on berries on

the Canadian Pacific Railway line about eight kilometres east of Castle Junction, between Banff and Lake Louise.

"They'll have a tough time," said Jillian Roulet, superintendent of Banff National Park.

Bear 66 had gained notoriety for her comfort around people, having once strolled down Banff Avenue several years ago.

She made headlines again in June by nibbling on a sleeping bag occupied by a young Quebec man who had been camping in the woods.

Banff wardens spent thousands of hours in the past few years monitoring her and trying to deter her from roaming into areas close to people. Popular trails were closed to give Bear 66 and her brood space.

Despite the human confrontations, Bear 66 was considered a docile grizzly, having never shown signs of serious aggression.

"Everybody's going to be really saddened by this event," said Bob Haney, a town councillor and former chief park warden.

"Everybody was hoping that this female bear would manage."

She had two previous litters of cubs, but none of those cubs survived to adulthood.

The sow's death will further imperil a population already in a "precarious" position, said one wildlife

advocate.

"It goes beyond the tragedy of this individual bear, and is a threat to the entire population," said Dave Poulton, executive director of the Calgary-Banff chapter of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society.

It's estimated there are 60 grizzly bears in Banff National Park, and about 700 in the province.

In addition to human-made hazards such as trains and highway traffic, the orphaned cubs will have to contend with threats from wolves and other bears while trying to find enough food to survive a long winter hibernation.

"There are certainly a lot of natural things that would cause them to be in jeopardy," said Roulet, while noting leaving them alone gives the cubs the best chance of survival.

Capturing cubs in the fall and releasing them after the winter greatly diminishes their ability to survive on their own, said Roulet. Attempts to bond orphaned cubs with another mother don't often work either, she added.

Although Parks Canada officials won't get directly involved in feeding or caring for the orphaned cubs, they will employ the usual tactics to discourage their contact with humans.

Another young grizzly bear was also struck and killed by a train on the Canadian Pacific Railway, two kilometres west of Castle Junction, on the night of May 31