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Editorial See other Editorial Articles Title: Relocation not an option? Relocation not an option? You may be aware of the story of the man who killed a black bear with a stick on Oct. 4 (“Green Lake man kills bear with stick,” Carole Rooney, Oct. 8). The story created immediate buzz, not just because of the story of survival but because of the aftermath involving the cubs. The man involved, Jim West, has had his scarred head flashed all over news broadcasts, papers and websites. The story sparked headlines all over the world, including “Man kills bear with stick, sports gnarly scars.” Comments from readers on the Net are abundant and varied. They range from statements in awe of West’s courage to anger over the death of a mother defending her young. One blogger remarked “This is without a doubt the manliest thing I have read in a long time.” And another wrote the bear seemed to be trying to carve a message in West’s head. But this is just the latest in a string of bear encounters, meetings that are having tragic consequences. In the past month, a family of three and a family of four have been put down in the 108 Mile area because they were eating apples in yards. The Cariboo is a hunting region, that is a fact. First instinct for many in the area is to shoot furry creatures first, ask questions later. When a deer or other animal is struck by a vehicle or found injured, the only response is to put it down, usually with a bullet. There is not a wildlife centre in the area to help injured wildlife, perhaps because it seems pointless to people to rehabilitate an animal they will probably shoot once it is released back into the wild. “Ah, yes. Now the centre has spent all that funding, time and effort into fixing up that animal's wounds. Now I can eat it.” But this latest, very public example of wildlife “conservation” in the Cariboo will hopefully raise enough eyebrows to make changes. Life really is survival of the fittest; in moments like West’s, it is kill or be killed. But when precautions are not made, as West has regretfully admitted, then there will be and should be questions asked and revisions made. The two cubs left orphaned when their mother chose to defend them and West chose to defend himself were innocent bystanders. So were the sets of two and three cubs playfully eating apples from trees in the 108 before they were shot by conservation officers. Is destruction really the only option? Is relocation just not considered anymore? Conservation officers have been quoted as saying aggressive or garbage-hungry mothers will pass on their harmful ways to their cubs through genes or habit. Bears have good memories, they say, and will come back to where food sources are abundant and easy. Although I believe conservation officers must have the best intentions at heart, I’m pretty sure there’s something else going on. When was the last time relocation was attempted in the region? BC has an amazing amount of forested area; can’t we try dumping these bears off in the middle of nowhere? And if it’s a question of money, which I am assuming it probably is, can a fund be started by those irked by the bears’ continued demise, contributions going toward live capture and relocation? We have to take responsibility for our actions as a society, even if it is for something as we see as positive, such as growth — with our growth comes encroachment on others, and we can’t just sweep those we displace under the rug, whether they be human or otherwise.
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#1. To: Tauzero (#0)
I thought that was a hell of a penalty to execute a family for eating apples in yards, then realized that they were talking about bears!
Rivers of blood were spilled out over land that, in normal times, not even the poorest Arab would have worried his head over." Field Marshal Erwin Rommel
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