Sooke residents are being asked to immediately report any sightings of three black bear cubs who lost their mother last week when she was hit by a car.
The cubs had taken refuge in a large tree on a private property along West Coast Road in Sooke, but left their high perch in the early hours on Tuesday and are now on the run.
High winds were forecast to hit the south Island on Tuesday, reaching speeds up to 100 km/hr.
The B.C. Conservation Officer Service wants to capture the young bears — estimated to be between six and eight months old and considered healthy — for rehabilitation at North Island Wildlife Recovery Centre in Errington.
Wild Wise is asking that only real-time sightings be reported to the RAPP line, 1-877-952-7277, or that people leave messages with Wild Wise on Facebook.
The conservation group said “everything that can be done, is being done” for the retrieval of the cubs, who were in a tree overhanging the Sooke Basin, where they were monitored over the past four days.
Wild Wise said the steep terrain did not allow for the safe setting of traps or sedation efforts by conservation officers. The tide was also high throughout the day, making the potential rescue area inaccessible.
“These are wild animals and we are unable to control their movements,” Wild Wise said in an online statement. “Monitoring and intervention after dark was not possible.”
The group is cautioning the public not to attempt any rescue efforts.
It’s also reminding residents to secure garbage and other bear attractants such as fallen fruit. The bear family had been eating from garbage cans for several weeks prior to the mother being killed on Thursday evening, it said.
“Mom has taught them that garbage is a food source, which likely was the contributing factor to this tragedy,” said Wild Wise. “Please secure your attractants … we do not want to lose another bear over garbage. It’s completely preventable.
