Kamloops maps urban bear sightings

A new online map is giving people in Kamloops a way to keep tabs on bears making their way into the city.

The map shows all bear sightings reported to conservation officers over the past two weeks, as well as the food sources that lured the animals into the city.

Kamloops Bear Aware coordinator Tristan Hopkins says people are surprised when they see how far into town the bears have wandered.

The map shows clusters of bear sightings in the Aberdeen area, and also around the city's downtown.

"When I talk to them they don't really believe when I say there are bears in a certain area, but looking at the map it really gives them a good idea of how careful they need to be in some areas."

He says the goal is to encourage people to remove food attractants such as fallen fruit or bird feeders.

Kamloops' Bear Smart program has been highly successful, says conservation officer Steve Wasylik. It's drastically reduced the number of bears his conservation officers have had to destroy.

"Last two years, I believe it was three, this year it's six. Previous years, officers would destroy 30 or 40 bears a year. So the program is working very well," said Wasylik.

On Wednesday, two baby black bear cubs were rescued from dumpster in Coquitlam, B.C., but their mother had to be destroyed because she had become too habituated to feeding on garbage.