Canada's Polar Bear Detention Facility has 28 cells, but it's not meant to punish "bad" bears, it's meant to protect both them and humans.
Tourists observe polar bears from a car. Photo: Aceshot1/Amusing Planet
Churchill, Manitoba, Canada, is known as the "polar bear capital of the world." It is the only town where humans and polar bears live together, and the only town with a "prison" dedicated to the animals, Business Insider reported on May 13. The special prison is called the Polar Bear Detention Facility.
Churchill, on the edge of the Arctic Circle, has a population of about 900 people, roughly the same as the number of polar bears living on the ice in nearby Hudson Bay. Polar bears leave the melting ice in late July each year and spend the summer in Wapusk National Park. The town of Churchill, located between the two locations, is a popular spot for polar bears. In October and November, the ice begins to form again and they return to hunt seals.
To keep residents and tourists safe from encounters with polar bears — the planet's largest land carnivores — the town of Churchill operates a Polar Bear Alert Program that is unique in the world, according to Chantal Cadger Maclean, the program's conservation officer.
Come fall, polar bears are hungry and will eat almost anything, so they are often seen near or in Churchill during the first three weeks of November. “Early in the year, they’re fat and happy from eating seals, so they’re not actively looking for food. But they’re opportunistic predators, so if there’s something around, they’ll eat it,” Maclean says.
That “something” is usually improperly covered trash. Humans are not usually on the polar bear’s menu. But if they’re hungry, they’re not picky. Because bears coming to town pose a risk of encountering and endangering humans, conservationists often try to drive them out of town as quickly and safely as possible.
Inside a prison for polar bears. Photo: Province of Manitoba
Polar bears have plenty of opportunities to leave town before they are trapped and taken to prison. Whenever a call comes in, conservationists from the Polar Bear Alert Program drop what they are doing and rush to the location. They use sirens and sound equipment to scare them away from Churchill. Helicopter crews can also spot bears hiding among the rocks and lead them away from town.
Bears are sensitive to loud noises, so this usually works, although sometimes conservationists must use additional physical deterrents such as rubber bullets or paintballs. However, some bears are not afraid of people and will not leave. Additionally, bears that have associated humans with a food source may return to rummage through trash cans. These bears are candidates for transfer to the Polar Bear Captive Facility. Thanks to the success of the Polar Bear Alert Program, euthanasia (humane killing) of polar bears is very rare.
To get polar bears to the prison, conservationists need to capture them, usually using two methods: using dart guns filled with Telazol to immobilize them or setting traps baited with seal meat. Next, they take the polar bears to one of the facility’s 28 holding cells. There are large cells for mothers and cubs, air-conditioned cells for hot weather, and single cells.
Polar bears inside a special holding facility. Photo: Province of Manitoba
Conservation staff will take measurements and attach ear tags to the bears for monitoring. The “prisoners” will live in the facility for 30 days or until ice forms in Hudson Bay – whichever comes first.
“If there is enough ice on the bay to drive a truck with the bears, we release them and usually never see them again. Otherwise, the bears are released by helicopter along the coast, away from town,” Maclean said.
In the Polar Bear Detention Facility, the “prisoners” are not fed, but they do have water and snow. According to Maclean’s, feeding the bears would associate food with humans and increase the risk of them returning to town. Furthermore, fasting is not harmful to the bears, as they live off their fat reserves in the summer and usually don’t eat anyway. The goal is to give them an experience they don’t want to repeat.
The Polar Bear Alert program is intended to protect both bears and humans. The Polar Bear Captive Facility is also not a punishment for “bad” bears. “They’re not bad. They’re just trying to do what bears do—walk on the ice and make a living,” Maclean said.
However, as the global climate warms and sea ice shrinks, bears are increasingly likely to come close to humans in search of food, putting both at risk. The Polar Bear Alert program helps manage bears rather than kill them—a practice that was common before the program was implemented in the late 1960s. Churchill has not had a fatal bear attack since 1983.
Thu Thao (According to Business Insider )
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