The wildlife is one of the most enchanting elements of Jasper National Park.
I fall in love with every critter, every black nose and furry butt I see. Witnessing our creatures in the wild, from hoary marmots to grizzly bears, pikas to moose, gives me a great sense of pride and responsibility. We live in their home, we must respect them.
But in 2019, human wildlife conflicts were up more than 1,000 incidents from the previous year (3,628 in 2019, 2,185 in 2018 - the previous record) and 300 of those incidents had human safety concerns. There was also a record amount of wildlife ‘jams’ (read more here).
Visitation was only up five per cent - so why the huge increase in incidents?
Cell phones and social media are certainly one of the factors. You often see people putting themselves in dangerous situations trying to get that perfect Instagram photo. Wary children being pushed close to an elk for a photo op.
The first time I saw this spring’s mama grizzly and twins, I saw a family pull up next to them, exit their vehicle, and run towards the bears. The bears scuttled away. They were lucky.
Do people forget that these are wild animals? This isn’t a zoo, we live in Jurassic Park.
Bears may look cute, but they can be ferocious. Elk, moose and other animals can be aggressive too - there have been vicious attacks in Jasper in the past.
And who suffers from these incidents? The wildlife. If an animal attacks a human or becomes conditioned to food in the townsite, Parks Canada is forced to euthanize them. It’s heartbreaking.
I really hope Parks’ new wildlife viewing restriction helps - that the restriction is made permanent and tickets are enforced.
But how can we help make people listen?
Yelling at people from a car window when they’re too close to wildlife is usually responded to by raised eyebrows or aggression.
Parks Canada gives information at booths and information centres, but people don’t seem to take it seriously.
Do we need garish signs informing people of potential fines? A spate of tickets to send a message?
Parks officials must feel like they’re banging their heads against the wall trying to find a solution.
This summer, please, stay in your vehicle. Respect wildlife and give them the space they need.
Call Jasper Dispatch 780-852-6155 if you see unsafe or aggressive human-wildlife interactions, injured or dead wildlife, or a predator in the townsite, a campground, or near accomodations.
Fuchsia Dragon
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