During active bear season it is important to keep in mind that birdfeeders can become bearfeeders.
Bears are always on the lookout for an easy meal and there's nothing quite as tempting as an accessible birdfeeder - the typical seven-pound birdfeeder contains 12,000 calories.
Being bear-responsible while attracting birds means you are doing your part to keep bears wild and out of our backyards.
A bear will be attracted into your yard by the smell of the birdseed, so ensure you are hanging the feeder well out of reach.
Once a bear gains access to a birdfeeder and receives a food reward, it will return again and again and it will look for birdfeeders in other yards. If a bear does gain access to your feeder, you must pull it in for the season and try to attract birds in other ways.
Here are some helpful tips on how to keep bears out of your birdfeeders:
Consider feeding birds while the bears are hibernating, typically between November to March.
Bring your birdfeeder in at night.
Ensure you hang the birdfeeder out of a bears reach at least 10 feet off the ground and 10 feet away from a climbable structure i.e. tree or post.
Use downrigger wire to hang your birdfeeders as this wire will hurt a bears paw before it can apply enough pressure to break the wire.
Use a seed catcher as discarded millet will collect on the ground and attract other wildlife such as rats and raccoons.
Buy quality birdseed that doesn't contain millet and keep all seed indoors or in a wildlife proof container.
The District of Squamish Wildlife Attractant Bylaw No. 2053, 2009 states any bird feeder containing bird feed, suet or nectar is suspended on a cable or other device in such a manner that it is inaccessible to wildlife; and the area below any bird feeding devices or activity is kept free of accumulations of seeds and similar animal attractants. \
Something to keep in mind is that the bylaw addresses wildlife, which includes coyotes, cougars, wolves and bears.
When you allow seeds to drop and accumulate on the ground, you run the risk of attracting small rodents and mammals, which in turn attract the larger predators.
We can feed birds, we just have to be mindful of how we do it.
For more information on how you can keep bears out of your feeders or how to attract birds without birdfeeders, contact at mtoom@squamish.ca.
