For the week of August 21 - 27, 2002

Bears were casualties 
of growth

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Wildlife experts have a saying: A fed bear is a dead bear.

The truth of the motto was driven home here when Idaho Fish and Game officers dispatched two bears here in as many weeks. One had developed a liking for breaking and entering into homes. Another had become accustomed to the good life in a camp for kids and didn’t want to leave.

Wildlife lovers are unhappy that Fish and Game didn’t try harder to trap and transplant the bears before dispatching them. However, before laying the blame for the bears’ demise on Fish and Game, valley residents need to look in the mirror.

The valley’s creatures used to find safe haven in side canyons and river areas between cities. These are now populated by subdivisions. Once secret and secure places for wildlife are regularly disturbed by traffic on the heavily used bike and ski trails.

Bears now know garbage pickup schedules better than humans. And why not?

Garbage containers are easy pickings for a species that knows good food when it smells it. All claims to the contrary, so-called bear-proof containers, protected by rubber Bungee cords, are not bear-proof. To bears, the cord is just the ribbon on a very tasty gift.

Bears aren’t the only wildlife having problems in the Wood River Valley.

People love deer and elk—until they start eating our flowers or throttling trees. We love to see moose until they threaten to stomp us or our dogs.

We are fascinated by precision-engineered beaver dams. But fascination turns to alarm when we discover the beaver used expensive landscaping for their building materials.

If the valley doesn’t want more dead bears, we have to figure out better ways to live with wildlife.

Adjusting local ordinances to require bear-proof dumpsters and garbage containers would be a good place to start.

Requiring developers who subdivide in known habitat to adapt designs for wildlife, to impose wildlife-friendly regulations on bird feeders and landscaping and to replace lost habitat would also help.

Fish and Game could help by coming up with an active public education program to keep residents and visitors from unwittingly setting up wildlife for execution or removal.

It’s up to everyone. We can learn how to share the valley with wildlife or we will one day find ourselves utterly alone in an urban wilderness.

 

The Idaho Mountain Express is distributed free to residents and guests throughout the Sun Valley, Idaho resort area community. Subscribers to the Idaho Mountain Express will read these stories and others in this week's issue.