Bear shot dead after encounter at store in Prince Albert National Park

The bear that was scared away from a store inside Prince Albert National Park on Saturday was shot dead the next day, according to Parks Canada.

Dave Archer, who works at the family-run Waskesiu Trading Company store inside the park, told CBC News the bear — possibly attracted by the smell of recently-baked cinnamon buns — banged on the back door of the shop on Saturday morning and was warded off.

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But Norman Stolle, a resource conservation officer with Parks Canada, said the healthy, three-to-four-year-old male bear remained in the townsite throughout the rest of Saturday, prompting park officers to shoot it dead at around 4:30 a.m. Sunday morning.

"It seemed to be getting into some trouble, becoming habituated to people and human food," said Stolle.

"We have records to show that he actually accessed human food on several occasions, and so basically had become habituated to people and associated the buildings [with] food because of access to the food that was left out or garbage that was left out by individuals."

Broke into store cooler 

Earlier last week, the bear broke into the Waskesiu Trading Company's cooler and feasted on macaroni salad, according to Archer. The cooler was then rigged to prevent future break-ins.

The bear that was shot had the same paintball markings as those made on the bear that visited the store, said Stolle.

But Stolle did not single out the store for blame in the bear's the fate.

"It's a shared responsibility between the park and the business and the visitors to keep the park clean and to keep the wildlife healthy," said Stolle.

The number of bears that need to be destroyed in the park varies per year. Some years it's zero, some years it's one or two, said Stolle.

"We're in a national park, we expect to see bears, but as long as people's behaviour is appropriate, we usually don't have any conflicts with bears," he said.

5 bears dealt with on weekend 

Four other bears visited the townsite and its environs during the Canada Day weekend and needed minding by parks officers.

One was trapped and taken to another area north of the park, while a sow and two cubs who were in the periphery of the townsite "but not getting into trouble" continue to be monitored, said Stolle.

To prevent encounters with bears, Stolle recommends:

• Keeping pets on leashes.
• Keeping buildings locked.
• Maintaining a respectful distance from wildlife.
• Securely storing food (when possible) inside buildings or vehicles.
• Reducing scents at a campsite.

"It's even things like dog food," said Stolle. "With campers it's things such as shampoo and toothpaste.

"So the key for us is that people actually store their garbage and their food in a manner that the bear can't access it."