Grizzly Bear Habitat Use, Bella Coola Valley / Nuxalk Territory

Grizzly Bear Habitat Use, Bella Coola Valley / Nuxalk Territory

The Bella Coola Valley / Nuxalk Territory was recently provided with an independently conducted Bear Hazard Assessment (BHA) and new Human Bear Conflict Management Plan (HBCMP) following decades of continued human-bear conflict incidence throughout the community. Implementation of the BCMP, following those recommendations outlined within the BHA, will support the community in its efforts to become recognized as a ‘Bear Smart’ community within BC. In order to further improve the recommendations of the BHA, this study aims to undertake a noninvasive grizzly and black bear occupancy survey through the use of camera traps to; i) validate and investigate spatio-temporal bear habitat use across the valley; ii) investigate impact of human activities on bear habitat use; and iii) examine conflict drivers and monitor efficacy of electric fencing as mitigation tool. 19 Browning cameras were deployed in summer 2021 and a preliminary report is being drafted from data to date.