Southwest Alberta grizzly bear population growing by 4% per year

The grizzly bear population in southwestern Alberta has been growing at four per cent a year since 2007, in an area that already has the highest density of grizzlies in the province, a University of Alberta study has found.

Researcher Andrea Morehouse says there are 67 resident bears in the area near Waterton Lakes National Park, with a larger population of 172 grizzlies that use the area.

That's up from 51 grizzlies in 2007, which translates into roughly 18 bears per 1,000 square kilometres, according to the province's estimate.

"It's a good story in that we're seeing that the population in this region is doing well," Morehouse told CBC News.

The bears are a part of a larger Rocky Mountain sub-population of over 1,000 grizzlies that includes animals in British Columbia and Montana.

Since 1999, there has been a significant increase in grizzly bear incidents with people or property in southwestern Alberta, according to the study, which was conducted by theUniversity of Alberta, Alberta Environment and Parks, and Parks Canada.

But Morehouse says scientists are working with ranchers to reduce conflicts, which largely arise from bears being attracted to grain or garbage left outdoors, as well as livestock in the fields.

"There's electric fencing projects, there's projects to remove dead stock off the landscape, changes to the grain bins themselves and all that work is really valuable and really important," Morehouse said.

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