Be bear aware: The bruins are back in town

Watch your trash or expect a ticket

Ski season may be over but another season is starting. That’s right: it’s bear season already. The bruins are waking up out of hibernation and at least two separate bears have been spotted wandering the streets and alleys of Crested Butte in the last week.

“It is definitely that time of year. By mid-April, most bears will be out,” said Chris Parmeter of the Colorado Department of Wildlife. “People need to start being mindful of their trash and bird feeders.”
There have been reports of a big male causing some havoc around town and a yearling bear that seems focused on the southwest side of Crested Butte.
“March and April is when the bears emerge and we start seeing activity again,” said Crested Butte assistant chief marshal Ted Conner. “They are obviously looking for food sources and the town has made some great strides in reducing those sources recently.”
Under the town ordinances, “wildlife-resistant containers” are encouraged for trash receptacles. Such containers can be put out at 6 o’clock the evening before trash pick-up day (Thursdays).
If you don’t have a wildlife resistant container, trash cannot be put out until the morning of trash collection.
“We are ticketing violators and they will get a fine,” Conner emphasized. “The citizens have done a pretty good job and it has gotten a lot better. It is working. Right now, the hope is that the bears in town will not be able to find enough food and mosey out of town. The key is that if everyone does their part in eliminating the food source, the bears will hopefully go back into the wild to find food.”
Parmeter agrees that the town efforts have helped reduce the number of bear encounters in Crested Butte. “The bear-proof trash cans are obviously working,” said Parmeter. “And it is important to continue. Even though we are still seeing some bears, last year the problem wasn’t nearly as bad as it had been.
“The trash situation is working and that is a no-brainer,” he continued. “Bird feeders are also a problem and a trickier situation. This time of the year the feeders attract pretty birds that are migrating but they also attract bears. It is important for people to understand the big picture.”
Parmeter said that four bears have been trapped and taken out of Crested Butte and relocated in the past two years. Those bears are tagged and given a tattoo. If they are trapped a second time, they are killed. “Colorado has a two-strike policy,” Parmeter explained. “It is getting more and more difficult to relocate a bear. No matter where you take a bear, there are people nearby. Shuffling bears around is not really a good alternative.”
Crested Butte’s Community Service officer Wes Brewer said that while the bears in town come out mostly at night, they are also spotted regularly during the daylight hours. “The problem with bears has definitely been helped by the more strict trash regulations,” he said. “The wildlife-resistant containers are very effective, not just for bears but for coyotes and birds as well.”
Approved trash containers are available through Waste Management.
“Getting bears out of town helps keep bears wild, and that is what we want,” said Parmeter. “A lot of people live in the area because there is a balance with wildlife.”
For more information, feel free to call the Crested Butte Marshals at 349-5231.