Post-conflict movements of polar bears in western Hudson Bay, Canada

Human–carnivore conflicts have increased as habitat has been affected by development and climate change. Understanding how biological factors, environment, and management decisions affect the behaviour of animals may reduce conflicts. We examined how biological factors, sea ice conditions, and manag...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Arctic Science
Main Authors: Miller, Erin N., Trim, Vicki, Lunn, Nicholas J., McGeachy, David, Derocher, Andrew E.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Canadian Science Publishing 2023
Subjects:
General Earth and Planetary Sciences
General Agricultural and Biological Sciences
General Environmental Science
Nunavut
Hudson Bay
Canada
Hudson
Arctic
Arviat
Churchill
Sea ice
Ursus maritimus
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/as-2023-0004
https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/full-xml/10.1139/as-2023-0004
https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/as-2023-0004
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Summary:Human–carnivore conflicts have increased as habitat has been affected by development and climate change. Understanding how biological factors, environment, and management decisions affect the behaviour of animals may reduce conflicts. We examined how biological factors, sea ice conditions, and management decisions affected the autumn migratory movement of polar bears ( Ursus maritimus Phipps, 1774) from 2016 to 2021 following their capture near Churchill, Manitoba, Canada, and release after a mean of 20 days (SE 2) in a holding facility. We deployed eartag satellite transmitters on 63 bears (26 males, 37 females), with 49% adults (>5 years old), 48% subadults (3–5 year old), and 3% <2-year old. We compared variation in on-ice departure of bears released post-conflict (conflict) to adult females without a conflict history (non-conflict). Conflict bears departed 89 km further north (mean = 59.7°N, SE 0.2) of non-conflict bears (mean = 58.9°N, SE 0.1). Bears released later during the migratory period were less likely to re-enter a community at a rate of 5.9%–6.4% per day. Of 69 releases (6 individuals requiring multiple releases), 12 bears re-entered Churchill and 13 entered Arviat, Nunavut. We suggest that the holding facility was effective at preventing additional conflicts and individuals with a high likelihood of recidivism should be held longer.

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