An adult female grizzly bear was killed, and her two yearling cubs were captured in Nelson, B.C., on Friday, according to the B.C. Conservation Officer Service. Two days prior, conservation officers killed another third yearling cub from the same group; this one had a leg injury, and the BCCOS said dispatching it was recommended by the B.C. Wildlife Vet. These two incidents came after conservation officers and the province’s wildlife branch received several reports of grizzlies frequenting Nelson and the surrounding area. The BCCOS said the female grizzly had shown signs of no longer fearing humans and food-conditioned behaviour. This behaviour included, “Repeatedly accessing residential properties and non-natural food sources such as fruit trees and barbecues, and regularly remaining in close proximity to people,” the BCCOS said. Conservation officers said they relocated the female grizzly and a previous set of her cubs in 2023, but her “extensive food-conditioning and increasing comfort in residential areas” eliminated a second relocation as a “viable management option” in the eyes of the B.C. Wildlife Vet, the BCCOS said. “We recognize this news will be upsetting for many people. The dispatching of any bear is an outcome that conservation officers, wildlife biologists, community partners, and residents work hard to prevent, and these decisions are never made lightly,” conservation officers said, in a statement. The BCCOS said the two yearling cubs have since been released for monitoring in a location that will not be disclosed. Community uproar The death of the female grizzly, affectionately known to Nelson residents as Nell, is a sad topic for Katie Graves—founder of a local advocacy group called the Ursa Society. She said the injured cub was one of Nell’s, and the community called him Wonder. Graves told CTV News that Nell and her cubs were loved—not feared—so much so that locals named her after the town of Nelson and dubbed her an “ambassador grizzly” to the community. “Everyone knows she’s not a threat; everyone knows she’s fine,” she said. “These bears have not gotten into trouble.” Graves and her group want more transparency from the BCCOS, she said. As she explained, conservation officers told the people of Nelson, weeks before the killing of Nell and Wonder, that these bears weren’t an issue, but they would be monitored. At this time, the BCCOS asked locals to call the Report All Poachers and Polluters, or RAPP, line when they see this group of grizzlies so officers could track their movements. Locals weren’t notified of any change in the BCCOS’s approach, but Wednesday brought the death of Wonder. Graves said this was because the B.C. Wildlife Vet didn’t believe he could survive in the wild without his mother, as he had an injured leg. “We need to know what happened; we need to know how these decisions are being made,” she said. “Three weeks ago, they were fine with this cub, and then three weeks later, it’s not OK.” Friday brought the news of Nell’s death, and Graves said she was always peaceful, even going back to when she was relocated in 2023. “There was never any trouble. I mean, she ate some fruit trees and got into somebody’s open-topped compost, but then she went to her den,” she said. Graves said a strong portion of Nelson’s population wasn’t in favour of the killing of Nell or Wonder, so she and other members of the Ursa Society gathered on Friday to voice their concern. What Graves said they want most is transparency when it comes to life and death decisions on wildlife they feel has an important role in the community, like the bear they called an “ambassador grizzly” who teaches the people of Nelson “what it means to coexist.” “There’s this sort of relationship that people have developed. It’s a pretty incredible thing,” she said. “It’s absolutely astounding that they made this decision, and we would like to know how this decision was made and where that came from.” Graves said she and her fellow society members will be submitting a freedom of information request to learn more about Nell and Wonder’s deaths.
