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Located
north of Prince Rupert, along Chatham Sound, at the head of
Khutzeymateen Inlet is the Khutzeymateen Grizzly Reserve - 45,000
hectares of protected sanctuary for the Grizzly Bear - North America's
second largest predator.
A ranger station built on a barge welcomes visitors to the Sanctuary.
Here, there is a little display providing information on the grizzly
bears. Boaters who want to anchor in the Reserve pays Canadian
$15.00 per person.
A conservationist, usually a marine biologist, monitors the movements of
bears in the Reserve. There are three elevations from which
the bears move about. In the summer of 2008, the station has a
record of 45 adult grizzlies and 14 cubs. Each bear is assigned a
number and the biologist knows the age, eating habits and individual
character patterns of these bears.
Tour boats operating out of Prince Rupert provides bear watching tours
to the Khutzeymateen Sanctuary.
There is an estimated count of 10,000 grizzly bears in British Columbia,
1,500 of which are located in the Central and North Coast and
about 70 of them are at the Reserve. The grizzly bears are
characterized by a hump in their back, and they are brown in color.
Black bears are also found in the reserve. Bears are usually
spotted near streams, creeks or river mouths where salmons retur to
spawn. They also hang around berry bushes. |
Today's zoom cameras can provide a close-up photo
