Grizzly bear photographed on Vancouver Island in rare sighting
The B.C. Conservation Officer Service (COS) is warning residents of a grizzly bear that's been spotted in the Port McNeill area of Vancouver Island.
Jessica Colombo, who lives about 10 minutes outside of Port McNeill, posted photos and a video of the grizzly bear in her backyard on Wednesday evening.
She says she wanted to warn other residents of the bear, since many have farmyard animals and children.
The grizzly bear is pictured in Port McNeill, B.C. (Jessica Colombo)"So usually every day after dinner I take my toddler outside and let him run around in the back property, just before bedtime to burn off some energy," she said.
Once they had returned inside, Colombo says the bear appeared right where they were playing.
"About two minutes later [my son] was standing at the window saying, 'Bear, mummy, bear!'" said Colombo.
"I was kind of shocked because it looked like a grizzly to me right away, but we don't get those here on the island."
Conservation officers have confirmed with CTV News that it was indeed a grizzly bear and are encouraging residents to give the bear space until it moves on, and to not approach it for pictures.
"This is risky behaviour that is not condoned by the COS," said the conservation service.
RARE SIGHTING
Colombo says the bear stayed in her yard for less than 10 minutes before wandering off.
"He kind of moseyed off back into the forest," she said.
Colombo says she was a little bit worried about calling the bear a grizzly online, since they are so rarely seen on the island, but wanted her neighbours and community to know about it so they could keep their animals – like horses, chickens and pets – safe from the bear.
The grizzly bear is pictured in Port McNeill, B.C. (Jessica Colombo)The BCCOS is encouraging people to secure or remove bear attractants, such as garbage, birdseed or pet food.
It adds that there have been no reports of aggressive behaviour related to the grizzly, or reports of conflicts, as of Thursday.
While it's rare, the conservation service says grizzly bears do occasionally swim to northern Vancouver Island and nearby gulf islands from the central coast.
"Conservation officers are monitoring the situation and are asking the public to please use caution and report any sightings to the Report All Poachers and Polluters (RAPP) hotline at 1-877-952-7277," said the BCCOS.
Colombo says she's grateful for the chance to have seen the bear, but hopes it doesn’t come back.
"It was really cool. I feel very lucky to have seen it for sure," she said.
She adds that she plans to be more mindful of her surroundings while out in her yard.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Parents of infant who died in wrong-way crash on Ontario's Hwy. 401 were in same vehicle
Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit has released new details about a wrong-way collision in Whitby on Monday night that claimed the lives of four people.
Three Quebec men from same family father hundreds of children
Three men in Quebec from the same family have fathered more than 600 children.
Jurors in Trump hush money trial hear recording of pivotal call on plan to buy affair story
Jurors in the hush money trial of Donald Trump heard a recording Thursday of him discussing with his then-lawyer and personal fixer a plan to purchase the silence of a Playboy model who has said she had an affair with the former president.
B.C. mayor stripped of budget, barred from committees over Indigenous residential schools book
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.
Captain sentenced to 4 years for criminal negligence in fiery deaths of 34 aboard scuba boat
A federal judge on Thursday sentenced a scuba dive boat captain to four years in custody and three years supervised release for criminal negligence after 34 people died in a fire aboard the vessel.
New scam targets Canada Carbon Rebate recipients
Fake text message and email campaigns trying to get money and information out of unsuspecting Canadian taxpayers have started circulating, just months after the federal government rebranded the carbon tax rebate the Canada Carbon Rebate.
Southern Alberta store broken into by burly black bear
Staff at a small southern Alberta office supply store were shocked to find someone had broken into the business last week, but they were even more confused when they discovered the culprit was a bear.
President Joe Biden calls Japan and India 'xenophobic' nations that do not welcome immigrants
President Joe Biden has called Japan and India “xenophobic” countries that do not welcome immigrants, lumping the two with adversaries China and Russia as he tried to explain their economic circumstances and contrasted the four with the U.S. on immigration.
Universities grapple with the complicated politics of campus encampments
Montreal police are facing pressure to move in and dismantle a pro-Palestinian encampment on McGill University campus on Thursday, as a growing number of universities across this country grapple with the tough decision of how to handle the protests.