A grizzly bear captured in a trap just west of Griffith Woods Park on Friday is expected to be released in the Nordegg region on the weekend.
The park, located along Discovery Ridge Boulevard S.W., was closed to the public on Tuesday after Alberta Fish and Wildlife said they received two reports of grizzly encounters the night before.
On Friday morning, area resident Scott Allred discovered the grizzly had been caught in a bear trap on his property near the Elbow Spring Golf Club.
“This bear has been tormenting us for about a month now,” he said. “He decided to eat some of my crab apples here about a week or so ago. Then we got Alberta Fish and Wildlife out about a week ago to put some electric fence around and protect the tree until we could get the apples out. I got all the apples picked … and they took the fence down. I think the bear was a little more comfortable with the fence not being there. “
“Now we got him.”
Trevor Miller with Alberta Fish and Wildlife said he didn’t believe the bear had become habitualized.
“This time of year they’re really food focused, so they’re really trying to put on as much weight as possible,” he explained. “We see that kind of behaviour often this time of year. They just don’t care about anything else but getting food.”
“This maybe is a wake-up call for the people that live in areas like this, that are infringing on large green spaces, that the movement of wildlife is increasing and everybody has to be really diligent in preventing encounters like this.”
The bear trap, which was on a trailer, was hooked up to a truck and transported to an Alberta Fish and Wildlife warehouse facility.
WATCH: Trevor Miller with Alberta Fish and Wildlife speaks with Jenna Freeman following the capture of a grizzly bear near Griffith Woods Park on Friday.
In a Friday afternoon update from Alberta Justice, Brendan Cox said the bear was tranquilized and assessed and its teeth were measured.
“We are confident this was the bear we were looking for, but we would like to make sure the trail cameras in the closure area don’t pick up anything else,” Cox said.
The adult male bear, who is in good health and weighs about 340 pounds, will be released into the wilderness on Saturday, Cox said.
The park will remain closed until further notice.
– With files from Jenna Freeman