A well-known white grizzly bear has been injured and two of its cubs have died in two incidents with vehicles on the Trans-Canada Highway. Yoho National Park Thursday.
Parks Canada said it received a report at 5:15 a.m. that two cubs of bear 178, also known as Nakodawas shot dead.
Wildlife managers found the two cubs dead on the road. The mother was also on the road and had been driven behind a nearby wildlife fence.
From Parks Canada The bears have been monitored along the highway since June 5, and staff have taken action to prevent the 178th bear from lingering on the highway, including repairing wildlife fencing.
“Despite our huge efforts … the herd made its way back to the road, they climbed over the fence and the cubs were left dying in the road,” she said.
Bear No. 178 is a rare white grizzly bear, known locally as Nakoda, that lives in Yoho National Park, British Columbia, near the Alta border.
Photo by Jason Leo Bantel/All in the Wild
Parks Canada said Nakoda was hit by a vehicle Thursday evening in a separate incident near Lake O'Hara Turnoff in Yoho National Park.
Wildlife managers witnessed the collision and moved her to the other side of the wildlife fence.
“She's moving fine other than a slight limp, but no other obvious injuries,” Stevens said.
The bear will continue to be monitored.
Stevens noted that the bear showed remarkable resilience after being hit by a car.
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“I've worked with bears for many years and have seen a lot of injuries that looked severe. From our perspective, we think it would be very difficult for the animals to survive and recover from these injuries,” Stevens said.
“But overall, bears seem to recover well and live long, healthy lives after serious events.”
Life along the highway
Parks Canada said Bear 178 was “very willing” to stay along the highway for a while, as bears return to areas they are familiar with and have reliable food sources.
Nakoda has experienced a lot of human interaction, which makes her feel “very comfortable” along the Trans-Canada Highway.
The white grizzly bear stopped on the side of the highway and flagged down several cars.
Photo by Jason Leo Bantel/All in the Wild
Wildlife experts with Parks Canada believe that continued snow in the high country and the added pressure of feeding their cubs prompted Nakoda to return to the highway in search of food.
“We were trying to stay one step ahead of her, but she's a very smart bear and she's used the roadside as her habitat since she was a little girl. So bears usually go back to the habitat they're most familiar with, and that's what we saw with 178,” Stevens said.
Jason Leo Bantle, a wildlife photographer who has been following Nakoda for the past five years, said in a statement: “This is an incredibly sad day… so many of us are devastated by her loss.”
“Nakoda tends to make her living along the busy Trans-Canada Highway, where she finds tall grasses next to the road every spring and often walks on the railroad tracks where grain is unloaded from train cars. These are dangerous choices.”
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Bantel added that Nakoda's mother and sister were both killed when they were struck by vehicles on the Trans-Canada Highway.
Working hard to keep Nakoda safe
Parks Canada began managing Nakoda and fitting him with a GPS collar in 2022. That year, he was moved three times from the Trans-Canada Highway to another area of his range.
In 2023, Parks Canada said the wildlife fence in Yoho National Park was electrified to stop the bear from climbing over the fence. 178 The bear was not seen on the road the rest of that year.
On May 23 of this year, Nakoda and her cub were spotted on the Trans-Canada Highway. In response, Parks Canada lowered the speed limit and established a no-stopping zone along a 10-kilometre stretch of the highway.
Parks Canada said they will continue to work to encourage Bear 178 to safer habitats away from roads and the community of Lake Louise.
Nakoda climbs over a wildlife fence in Yoho National Park.
Photo by Jason Leo Bantel/All in the Wild
“Unfortunately, she seems to be very good at and insistent on climbing the fence,” Stevens said.
We’re always trying to mitigate and adjust and see if we can adjust some of the materials on the fence and the spots where we find she might be able to get through. So it’s a work in progress.”
Currently, Parks Canada has no plans to relocate Bear No. 178 a fourth time.
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