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Goderich Signal Star, 2017-02-22, Page 2424 Signal Star • Wednesday, February 22, 2017 Bears migrating in southern Ontario becoming more common Shaun Gregory Postmedia Network The animal control officer for Huron County has deduced that at least six black bears were in the area and he deems that some of them may now call Huron County home. In 2016, animal control officer Bob Trick received more than 30 reported bear sightings in the region. Through a series of inves- tigations involving bear scat in the colder months of the year, he. concluding that they are not sim- ply passing through but "overwin- tering" in Huron County. "There is more than one. I'mL likely thinking about five bears," Trick said Feb. 9 in a phone interview. A mother with one cub, a lone large bear and a mother bear who has two cubs have been sighted numerous times, said Trick. "[They] were different sized bears, from 150-400 pounds. [We] know it's not the same bear," he said. The reports of bear sightings come from all points on the Huron County map including Port Albert, Kippen near l Iomesville and the China Palace in Clinton. Trick said last summer two dogs that had gotten loose in Clinton had suffered injuries from an encounter with a bear; one dog died in the altercation and the other survived. While Huron County is not considered a primary habitat for the animal in southwestern Ontario, it is currently witness- ing an abundance of bear activity. • This increase does not surprise Mike Gatt, regional wildlife special- ist for the Ontario Ministry of Natu- ral Resources and Forestry. "It's not your typical hear habi- tat, compared to further north, but they do exist in those areas, adding that this will occur more often if there is a food shortage near the Canadian Shield," he said. These animals will travel far and wide when cessities are scarce, this include when.one of their favourite sw is is in crop failure, which is berries. "They will start roaming more and we will get more sightings in the south," he said, while also Ausable Bayfield Conservation elects new Chair, Vice Chair Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA) elected a new Chair and Vice Chair at the Annual Meeting held on Thursday, February 16, 2017. Burkhard Metzger, of the Municipality of Central Huron, was elected as the new Chairman. George Irvin, of the Municipality of Bluewater, was elected as the new Vice Chairman. Mike Tam, Past Chairman of the ABCA, has served in the role since 2014..Ausable Bayfield Conservation's General Manager and Secretary-Treas- urer, ecretaryTreasurer, Brian Homer, thanked Tam for his dedicated service as Chain Tam will continue to serve on the Board as a director as a representative from the Municipality of West Perth. Also con- tinuing to serve on the Board are: Ray Chart rand (The Municipality of Huron East); Doug Cook (representing the municipalities of Lambton Shores and Warwick); Dave Frayne (representing the municipalities of South Huron and Perth South); Wayne Hall (represent- ing the Township of Lucan Biddulph); and Bob Harvey (representing the municipalities of Adelaide -Metcalfe and Middlesex Centre). Board member Don Shipway, of the Municipality of North Mid- dlesex, indicated that he will step down as a director as his duties as Warden of Middlesex County don't leave enough time to continue his work on the ABCA Board. He thanked directors and staff for their work and said he was honoured to serve on the Board. The Board voted on and approved the 2017 Budget. Staff reports included a Moving For- ward report about re-engaging the public in work to update the 2000 Shoreline Management Plan (SMP). Staffpresented the Board with a report with public re-engagement options (as had been requested by the Board at a special meeting in 2016 that drew more than 270 people). At the Febru- ary 16, 2017 Annual Meeting and Board meeting, the Board of Directors approved recommendations, in the staff report, for moving forward in 2017 and 2018. The report is posted online on the shoreline management page at abca.on:ca. Other staff reports at the Annual Meeting included flood messaging; fall tree order program and conser- vation lands updates; a conserva- tion education update; a Conserva- tion Foundation report; presentation of an unaudited profit and loss statement; and a report on consultation on a proposal to reduce the size of the source pro- tection committee for the Ausable Bayfield Maitland Valley Drinking Water Source Protection Region. The Board of Directors next meets on Thursday, March 16, 2017 at 2:30 p.m. The annual Conserva- tionist of the Year awards evening takes place on March 16 as well. Huron County is a destination for black bears compared to otherparts of southwestern Ontario. saying from previous years, the numbers have increased signifi- cantly in southern Ontario. Confirming reports he follows from Bear Wise, a 24-hour bear encounter hotline, up and run- ning from April 1 to Nov. 30, Gatt mentioned that the num- bers in the Huron County region are still somewhat low com- pared to other places like the Bruce Peninsula. There were 397 occurrences in that region last year. Currently the black bears are, not tracked in the province, so there is no way to monitor their movements. Postmedia file photo But Gatt said the Ministry has performed scientific techniques in the past like DNA fingerprint- ing. This process is done to more accurately estimate the black bear populations in Ontario, which he considers currently "stable, sitting at 85,000 and 105, 000. Goderich Kinette Club donations The Goderich Kinette Club recently donated close to $12,000 to eight kcal youth organizations. They included: Goderich Ringette, Goderich Seahawks, Huron Hurricanes, Benmiller Youth Fastball, Goderich Skating Club, Bayfield Agricultural Society Discovery Tent, GDCI Parent Council, and the GDCI Reach for the Top Team. THE GODERICH KINETTE CLUB ! Goderich LionsC1u6 t i f Contributed photos The Goderich Kinette Club recently donated $50,000 to the Goderich Lions Club to build a new bunkie at Camp Klahanie.: