A second bison bull that wandered out of Banff National Park has been captured and relocated to a paddock in southern Alberta, according to Parks Canada.
Officials said they killed one of two bison bulls that wandered out of the park last week and addressed the decision on Monday.
“Our options for recapturing the bull in this situation were compromised by various factors, including the speed at which the bison was moving eastward [and] the availability of key resources, such as staff and helicopters,” said Bill Hunt, resource conservation manager of Banff National Park.
“Wildfires burning in the immediate area and throughout western Canada left limited availability of helicopters and smoke reduced visibility,” Hunt added. “These factors also presented a risk to staff safety.”
They said they were able to capture and immobilize the second bull with a tranquilizer shot on Sunday.
The bull was flown by helicopter to a nearby horse trailer and transported to Waterton Lakes National Park. Officials were concerned that if they put the animal back with the herd it might meander out of the park again, so they decided on a bison paddock in Waterton.
Parks Canada said the two animals were moving toward private grazing land and posed a safety risk to the public and to livestock.
The herd of bison in Banff was allowed to roam free on July 29, and the two bulls wandered off on Aug. 5.
— With files from the Canadian Press