People in William’s harbor were recently left to clean up the devastation caused by a polar bear that has invaded almost every home in the Labrador community. Now a non-profit organization from Manitoba hopes to warn people like them the next time a bear comes to town.
The bear broke down doors, smashed windows and ate people’s food on Friday. He also tore a sofa and scattered clothes in the small community, about 441 kilometers southeast of Happy Valley-Goose Bay.
“It’s quite rare, so much damage,” said Cliff Russell, whose house was damaged. “I think maybe somewhere along the line he found food in a cabin somewhere or something. And now he just seems to know how to break through pretty well.
Russell said more bears seem to pass through the community each year and he wants to see more bear licenses issued to local hunters. But the provincial government says the increase in polar bear sightings this year is due to sea ice conditions and the spread of seals, rather than more actual bears, and is not considering increasing hunting licenses.
The Ministry of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture said that the last census of the polar bear population in the Davis Strait in 2017-18 registered 2015 bears that were identified as “vulnerable” and not threatened by the government.
The polar bear ate some food in the homes and damaged various items – including this sofa. (Submitted by Rebecca Larkum)
Russell said that if seal hunting was allowed in the area, it would drive away the bears, as there would be fewer seals to eat.
“There was a time when we traveled along the coast without worrying about bears, and now it seems like you almost have to carry a gun when you’re on Ski-Doo, especially when there aren’t many people around,” Russell said. “You wouldn’t want to break up and have to go home and run into one of them.”
The polar bear made its way into the shed in William’s harbor, knocking off a hinged door. (Hayward Larkum / Facebook)
Prevention of damage – for humans and bears – the goal
When it comes to situations such as William’s Harbor, a bear climbing on a rooftop St. Anthony, or a man trying to break into a home with a mother and daughter inside Conch, a nonprofit works to build a radar tower with artificial intelligence able to warn people in advance.
BJ Kirschhoffer, director of field operations for Polar Bear International, says that every time polar bears and humans overlap, there is potential for harm to both humans and bears.
“The more tools we can provide people with as a warning, the more time people have to react to the situation and they may have a better outcome for both humans and polar bears.
Polar bears are depicted on the ice near Pinsent’s Arm, about 100 kilometers from William’s Harbor. (Submitted by Brendan Clark)
The nonprofit is testing three types of radar at its location near Churchill, Manchester, dubbed the “World Capital of Polar Bears” in hopes of creating one that can be used across the Arctic because the radar doesn’t rely on cameras and can used in difficult winter conditions.
The nonprofit began working with SpotterRF radar company and quickly learned that its radar in Wapusk National Park in Manitoba captures everything – so there must be a way to filter out unwanted traffic signals.
Polar Bear International Radar Station is located on Cape Churchill in Wapusk National Park in Manitoba. (KT Miller / Polar Bears International)
Polar Bear International has programmed SpotterRF’s AI system with the movements of various animals and is now testing it.
“If we can continue to filter and continue to focus only on what we want to see, the polar bears, this tool could potentially become quite powerful,” Kirshofer said. “We really have to have a high degree of accuracy if people are going to rely on that for safety.”
Smarter than your average bears
But the radar has missed several bears in the years it has been operating due to the nature of their movements, Kirhofer said.
Radar works by “pinging” something moving; after a certain amount of pings, you can confirm that something is there. But a polar bear that is not motivated by food or mating walks slowly to save energy and often stops to smell, he said.
“Polar bears have more or less exploited the weakness of radar in some way,” Kirschhofer said. “The polar bear, with its Stop and Smell method, has made it a difficult target to track.”
BJ Kirschhoffer installed radar on Cape Churchill’s tower. (International Polar Bear)
A community that wants to test the system could apply for a grant to fund the construction of the radar tower – approximately $ 50,000, Kirshofer said.
“It can be quite a powerful tool for community advancement,” he said.
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