An expert in rehabilitation of wild animals says Manitoba is condemning an orphaned black bear to death by releasing it into the wild.

Mike McIntosh, who runs Bear With Us Sanctuary and Rehabilitation Centre for bears in Sprucedale, Ont., says the cub is far too young to fend for itself.

"It's almost certainly a death sentence for a five-month-old bear cub. He would have a very slight chance of surviving in the wild."

Manitoba Conservation seized the cub, nicknamed Makoon, after he was rescued in March from a ditch near St. Malo, Man.

Rene Dubois found and named the bear, caring for it for almost two weeks before conservation officials seized it and placed it in the Assiniboine Park Zoo.

Conservation intends to take the cub to a remote part of the province for release. However, McIntosh says cubs usually spend 18 months with their mothers and Makoon is simply not ready.

"There's little instinct. Most food finding skills are learned," he said.

Manitoba does not have a centre authorized to prepare orphaned bears for the wild.

McIntosh has offered to prepare the cub for release at his rehabilitation centre, but Manitoba Conservation says it isn't interested.

Jim Duncan, acting director of the provincial wildlife branch, says bear research supports the government's early release plan.

"I draw upon scientific research that suggests bears at this stage will have an excellent chance of survival. The goal is to get these animals back into the wild," he said.

Duncan says there's no study or evidence suggesting that length of time spent in a rehabilitation centre affects a cub's chance of survival. He says the cost of rehabilitation is not a factor.

"We're just basing it on the peer-reviewed research that says a bear like this has an excellent chance of survival," he said.

However, he says he does not know if the province has ever released a bear this young back into the wild.

The province will monitor the bear's development for the next month at the zoo. If the cub remains in good condition it will be sent in June to a remote part of the province for release, he said.