The bears are back.
Conservation officer David Cox is once again warning Burnaby Mountain residents and Simon Fraser University students to keep an eye out for the bruins as recent sightings are on the rise.
"The campus security, because they are all hours, have reported to us several half dozen or dozen calls of a bear or bears," Cox said.
SFU has taken precautions to bear-proof the university, he added, but the bears have been found all over Burnaby Mountain.
People have reported seeing bears by the student residence, close to the garbage compactor site. They've also seen them sitting by the side of the road, grazing, or just "doing bear stuff" Cox said.
The sightings are often later in the evening or early in the morning, he added.
There have been no signs of bear aggression. Cox thinks they are looking for food and trying to replenish weight lost during winter.
"It's important for people, if they live in the Burnaby Mountain area, to secure their attractants," Cox said.
To report a bear sighting, call 1-877-952-7277, but only make reports if the bear is exhibiting strange or aggressive behaviour.
"We don't really need to know if it's eating grass and totally behaving itself," he said.
jmoreau@burnabynow. com
