communities near berry fields, he warns. They also become a danger to employees such as pickers, he adds. Some of the problem bruins weigh as much as 270 kilograms (600 pounds). In Coquitlam alone last year there were 1,786 complaints about bears, an increase of 15 per cent over the previous year. Hunter would like to see Fraser Valley


communities become Bear Smart Communities under B.C.’s Bear Aware program, and he wonders if it wouldn’t be a good promotional tool for the industry to create a logo for growers who adopt Bear Smart initiatives to be declared Bear Smart producers. It would be well-received by consumers, who frequently hold a reverence for bears, as majestic wild animals. In the Fraser Valley there is already a Black Bear Working Group that includes municipal bylaw officers and others who deal with problem wildlife, wildlife coordinators from WildSafe B.C. and conservation officers, and he would like to see industry representatives on it as well.


Hunter advises growers to encircle their berry fields and their bee hives with electric fencing of at least 6,000 watts, with hot wires spaced no wider than 20 centimetres (eight inches) apart.


As well, he advises that chicken wire should be attached to the bottom, so it is also electrified, and then buried to prevent bears from digging under the fence to get in.


Electric fencing for bears needs to provide a nose or face shock to deter bears, who lead with their noses, which are wet and sensitive, advises Gillian Sanders of WildSafe B.C. Bears have thick fur that can insulate them, so a significant shock is needed to get the message across.


Beehives should be kept a minimum of one metre inside the fence. Maintenance is also necessary to ensure the right amount of electricity is kept running through the wires and grass and weeds must be kept away from the wires.


There’s very little risk to pets and children from electric fencing, she says, because energizers are used which have a capacitor which sends energy out on a pulse, so no animal or person can get locked on the fence.


Sanders says electric fences are cost- effective, safe and easy to install. There are also lightweight, portable electric fencing systems that can be set up and working in less than two hours,


JUDIE STEEVES Beehives bear-proofed with electric fencing. British Columbia Berry Grower • Spring 2017 5


as well as solar-powered systems that can be installed wherever there’s enough sun to re-charge the batteries, she says.


Conservation Officer Ken Owens is one of the senior predator attack instructors with the Western Canada Conservation Law Enforcement Academy and teaches recruits about dealing with human/wildlife conflicts.


He notes that farmers must follow good husbandry practices to not be charged under the Wildlife Act for leaving out wildlife ‘attractants.’ COs can issue Dangerous Wildlife


Protection orders to anyone caught leaving out such attractants as fruit, garbage or other food.


Those people must then clean up the attractants and come into compliance, in


JUDIE STEEVES Bear damage in blueberry plants.


order to protect people and property from wildlife such as bears. Owens warns that when they’re hungry, bears will “move heaven and earth to get to food.”


Electric fencing is one tool in the toolbox to help growers deal with problem wildlife, he says.


“We try to work with growers to help them solve their wildlife problems.”


In fall, when some fruit is ripe and ready to be harvested, bears require 30,000 calories a day in order to go into hibernation or hyperphagia. They also have noses that are 2,100 times better than that of a human, so if you leave food available, they will sniff it out. “The bears are only doing what they’re naturally driven to do—support themselves.”


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