Three black bears shot by Sudbury police so far this summer
Two bears were hit by cars while a third was injured when a Sudbury resident shot it with a crossbow
Sudbury police have had to euthanize three bears this season after the animals were wounded by local residents.
"In each situation, the bear was previously injured, and as a result we did that just to take away the bear's suffering," said Sudbury police inspector Michael Chapman.
Two of the bears were hit by cars on highways near Lively and Hanmer and were still breathing when police arrived, Chapman said.
The third bear was wounded when a local resident shot it with a crossbow.
In that case, the person shot an arrow at that bear after it wandered on to their neighbour's porch.
"We believe it was done in a safe manner and as a result there are no charges," Chapman told CBC News.
"The reason for why the resident did that— although we don't encourage that—was appropriate in the circumstances."
Complaints down, but too early in the season to tell
Complaints about bears have decreased compared to this time last year.
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) has received 250 calls to its Bear Wise line so far— half the amount they received this time last summer.
But both police and the ministry said the season is just getting started.
"We've got the rest of the summer to get through," said Ross Hart, the Sudbury district manager for the MNRF.
"A call to the Bear Wise line is not necessarily meaning that we've got a new bear sighting. Calls may be down because fewer people are seeing that same bear."
Hart said the bear's food source changes over the season, whether it's berries or bugs. When one of those natural food sources dries up, that's when bears come into residential areas looking for food.
"Bears move on from food source to food source. Right now its blueberries and there aren't a lot of them," Hart said.
"It's really hard to predict for the rest of the summer season and into the fall when different crops will ripen," he said.
"It's too early to tell right now."
Morning North: Listen here for the latest on the Sudbury bear season so far.
