Polar Bear Alert in Churchill
Life in the Polar Bear Capital of the World
Gold Star Canadian Tours Lead Scientist, Cate Collins, discusses how people and bears are kept safe and separated in Churchill, Manitoba.
The bears are back in town. With the sea ice melting, the polar bears are forced to come onto land on the shores of Hudson Bay. This means the residents of Churchill, Manitoba, have to be on alert. Churchill is known as the polar bear capital of the world as polar bears migrate through the area annually, awaiting the return of the sea ice in the fall. The town has implemented measures to keep both residents and bears safe.
Living with Polar Bears
Over 20 years ago, Churchill closed its open-air garbage dump to minimize attractants for the bears. Now, they’re turning to new and advanced technology to help keep bears out of town. While conservation officers from Churchill’s Polar Bear Alert program patrol for visiting bears, Polar Bears International has been working on a sophisticated radar system to detect polar bears earlier and deter them before they reach Churchill. They have based their radar system on a military system and are training it to recognize polar bears. It is a work in progress. They need it to recognize polar bears from any angle, but also to not recognize anything else, like cars or other wildlife. It also needs to function in challenging conditions, such as during a snowstorm and through the many hours of darkness this region experiences in the winter. The goal is to keep both humans and bears safer by providing an early alert when bears are heading towards town, allowing them to be intercepted. It is a system that complements the important work of conservation officers. While they are testing these systems in Churchill, the hope is to roll them out to other Arctic communities with fewer resources to run polar bear alert programs. With the climate warming and the sea ice melting earlier, we expect to see more encounters with polar bears in coming years, so these systems will become especially important.
The Polar Bear Jail in Churchill
Despite deterrents, some bears are relentless in wanting to spend time in town. So, what happens to these problem bears? The conservation officers try to deter the bears and will sometimes even transport them far away from town. But if they keep returning, the bears are sent to a polar bear holding facility just outside the town of Churchill. Typical sentences for polar bears are around 30 days, but the most dangerous bears can be held until the sea ice returns in the fall. The bears are not fed while in jail, but they are used to fasting for long periods over the summer months and can survive on their fat stores. Our expeditions pass by the jail on our drive out to the Churchill Wildlife Management Area where we board the tundra buggies.
The residents of Churchill are constantly learning how to adapt and coexist with this remarkable species. Our tour partners, Frontiers North, do an amazing job of keeping us safe while on our one-day Expeditions to see polar bears in the wild.
About Gold Star Canadian Tours
At Gold Star Canadian Tours, we focus on providing the worlds best travel experiences to authentically Canadian destinations. Our flagship tour is a convenient 1-day Polar Bear Expedition with dedicated non-stop charter flights from major airports directly to Churchill, Manitoba. With Gold Star Canadian Tours, the wonders of the Arctic are closer than ever. Your Adventure Awaits!
