At all times when in the field in
situations where you may encounter bears, other predators or large ungulates:
·
Be alert for wildlife and wildlife sign
·
Check-in regularly as per pre-arranged schedule
·
Properly control food and food waste
·
Whenever possible (and safe and appropriate)
travel with the wind at your back making enough noise to alert animals in your
path to your presence
When you detect a bear, fresh bear sign,
or other predator or large ungulate:
·
Assess the situation and attempt to determine the
level of the risk (freshness of sign, wildlife visible at a far or near
distance, etc.)
·
Ensure that all members of the crew are accounted
for and stay together as a single group
·
If the sign is very fresh or associated with the
likely continued presence of the wildlife (e.g., a carcass or other feeding
site) then suspend all work for the team
and leave the area immediately.
·
If sign is not fresh or the sighting of the
wildlife is at a considerable distance, assign someone from the crew to continue
to monitor the wildlife (or be vigilant for further sign)
·
Notify your contact at your next check-in of the
sign that you have detected and consider establishing an increased frequency of
radio check-ins.
When you detect bears, other predators,
or large ungulates far away:
·
Ensure that all members of the crew are accounted
for and stay together as a single group
·
Assess the likelihood of encountering that
wildlife (e.g., animal’s direction of travel, your direction of travel and
intended destination). If you are
likely to come close to the animal,
temporarily suspend all work and continue to observe the animal.
If you lose site of the animal and it appears to be moving in your
direction leave the area.
·
Notify your contact at your next check-in of the
sign that you have detected and consider establishing an increased frequency of
radio check-ins.
·
If a closer encounter seems unlikely, assign one
of the crew to continue to monitor the animal, keep your entire crew together,
and continue on with your work.
When you detect bears, other predators,
or large ungulates near you or your intended worksite:
·
If you appear to not have been detected by the
animal, make sure all members of your crew are accounted for and as a group
leave the work area and the intended work.
·
If you find yourself in a situation where you
cannot just remove yourself from the situation, your actions will be dictated by
the species you have encountered and the type of behaviour being exhibited by
that species.
Bears
If you can leave the
area undetected then do so
·
leave the area quietly in the same direction that
you came from;
·
move while the bear’s head is down; stop moving
when the bear lifts its head to check its surroundings;
·
stay downwind so the bear will not pick up your
scent;
·
when you have moved a safe distance away, you can
either watch and wait until the bear leaves or abandon working in that area on
that day.
If you cannot leave
undetected
·
then let the bear know that you are present by
smell first; therefore move upwind so they can pick up your scent.
·
You should try to move out of the way without
being noticed by the bear. If you cannot do this, talk loudly to let the bear
know where you are.
If the bear is aware
of you but in the distance
·
then remain calm then either reverse your
direction or at least head away from the bear.
Make sure that you DO NOT RUN.
If the bear is close
to you when first encountered
·
If time permits, attempt to assess whether the
encounter is a provoked situation
(your actions or proximity to food or you have provoked the encounter) or a
predatory attack (the bear is
stalking you or viewing you as food) – this will determine how best to react to
the bear’s behaviour.
If the bear begins
to follow you
·
drop your pack or some article, (not food) to
distract the bear allowing you time to escape.
·
If it is a grizzly following you, climb a tree if
there is a large tree around. Although grizzlies can climb trees, they are often
not motivated enough to try – you need to get 3 to 4 metres up a large tree for
this to be effective.
If the bear is very
close and approaching
·
at a distance of less than 50 meters in an open
area and closer in a forested area, be prepared to use your deterrent.
·
If the bear does not respond to the deterrent you
must now STAND YOUR GROUND!
If the bear charges
·
A bear will charge you at high speed down on all
four legs and often crouched low to the ground. Bears do not charge when
standing up on its hind legs. Many charges are bluffs but it is difficult to
know if the bear is bluff charging or not until it gets very close.
·
When faced with a charging bear you have two
options: first, use your bear deterrent/shoot to kill if you have a gun, or play
dead if you are unarmed and have no other choice (unless you believe that you
are dealing with a predatory bear in which case you need to fight back as best
you can).
Cougars
If a cougar behaves aggressively:
·
Arm yourself with a large stick, throw rocks,
speak loudly and firmly. Convince the cougar that you are a threat not prey.
·
If a cougar attacks, fight back! Many people have
survived cougar attacks by fighting back with anything, including rocks, sticks,
bare fists, and fishing poles.
Wolves
If a wolf appears and acts unafraid or aggressive, take the
following action as soon as you notice the animal:
·
Do not allow the wolf to approach any closer than
100 metres.
·
Raise your arms and wave them in the air to make
yourself appear larger.
·
When in a group, act in unison to send a clear
message to the wolves they are not welcome.
·
Back away slowly, do not turn your back on the
wolf.
·
Make noise, throw sticks, rocks and sand at the
wolf.
Moose and other large
ungulates
If a moose is encountered, a minimum of 100 m must be put
between yourself and the animal.
·
If the moose remains stationary, you should
cautiously move away from the animal, monitoring its behaviour in the process.
Signals such as whether its ears are forward or back, or a lowering of the head
are good indicators of aggressiveness (forward and erect is the animal being
alert, back and down over the head is aggressive). React according to the
signals being sent by the animal. Also, the direction you use in moving away
should not interfere with any natural escape routes the moose may want to take.
Similarly, it is very important not to position yourself between two moose (cow
and calf or two rutting males).
·
If a moose feels threatened, it may charge at the
person that has invaded its space. Some examples of aggressive behaviour that
may be exhibited are flattening of the ears and approaching humans.
·
Walk quickly, or if safe to do so, run away from
the moose – this will not lead to a sustained attack and is likely prevent it.
·
Should the moose charge regardless, the best
method of defense is to move behind a big tree, light standard or other large
stationary object.
·
Continue to try to get away from the animal while
always keeping large solid objects between yourself and the moose. It is
imperative that no false sense of security is attained once a large solid object
is between a person and an angry moose, as moose are very capable of kicking
accurately with their forelegs around a tree trunk.
If you encounter a bear or
any aggressive wildlife, please report sighting and details to the UNBC BMAP
Research Coordinator and to KBR, KM LNG, or PTPLP as applicable.
In the event of an adverse wildlife encounter resulting in
injury:
·
Obtain first aid/medical treatment.
After field work:
·
In the event of an adverse wildlife encounter,
notify applicable government agencies and complete an incident/near miss report.