Grizzly bear shot and killed near Rankin Inlet
More grizzlies are being spotted in the region, mayor says
A grizzly bear wanders around Rankin Inlet near Diane River in this photo taken Friday morning. (Photo courtesy of Jerry Angidlik)
A grizzly bear was shot and killed Friday after it was spotted roaming around Rankin Inlet unusually close to the community.
“It’s not very common at all. We get to see them quite a bit out on the land, but not this close,” Mayor Harry Towtongie said in a phone interview early Friday afternoon.
Hamlet Coun. Michael Shouldice said in a Facebook messsage the bear was first spotted near the shooting range just a kilometre outside the hamlet.
It then wandered away to Landing Lake about four kilometres from Rankin Inlet. Local hunter Koby Connelly shot the bear, he said.
Towtongie said it’s hard to estimate how large the bear was, but it’s likely an adult that “doesn’t look that small.”
Adult male and female grizzlies can weigh anywhere between 145 kilograms (about 320 pounds) and 380 kilograms (about 825 pounds) and grow to about 2.6 metres in length (about eight and a half feet), according to the Government of Nunavut.
“It’s scary, but you just have to be careful out there and make sure you keep an eye and make sure it doesn’t get too close to people,” Towtongie said.
The bear was killed later on Friday morning, Towtongie said in a text message.
Grizzly bears can be found throughout the Kivalliq Region and in large portions of the Kitikmeot and Baffin, a GN website said, though population estimates are “lacking” in the territory, according to the federal government’s data from 2016.
Grizzlies are becoming more common in the North in recent years, Towtongie said.
“When we were younger, we hardly even knew what a grizzly bear was,” he said, adding that 15 to 20 years ago hunters started spotting them, along with wolverine, more often in the region.
“It could it be forest fires or climate change. I’m not really an expert on this,” Towtongie said.
Well there is one happy hunter got his trophy kill for the year. I believe that hunters draw straws for kills like these. Humans need to start learning how to live with wildlife keep your trash in a protected place from animals really how hard is that. Buy the way I dislike hunters.
Claire
This was a bear shot by natives on their land. This how they handled it. It wasn’t hunted, Do you think the Elders thought “Oh good, a bear we can make money selling a hunt to some southerner”. Do you honestly think they would leave a grizzly bear close to their families and wait until some hunter said he/she was willing to book a flight up? This was a safety issue. If someone who endangers your community you have police you can call who respond in under 5 minutes. They responder. And yes, someone gets to eat the bear meat.
Ps. With regard to hunting up there and native rights, I’m a white male so maybe I don’t know what food costs in Rankin. Feel free to contact the store up there. Cbc says food in Rankin costs 2-3 times what it does in Ontario and most families can barely feed themselves.
Have you been to Nunavut? Your comment suggests you don’t understand the Inuit way of life. This is not about a trophy kill, it is about community survival.
What makes this a trophy kill is the use of a rifle / gun.
Further, the killer posed with the dead bear with gun in hand as if the bear had no spirit. In the old ways, world over, a hunter would honour the prey by thanking the creator for the offering , rather than posing for a photo opp. If the hunter gave thanks to the creator, it should be highlighted in interview / photo… rather than honouring the riffle.
btw… did you know that explosives were invented by the Chinese as fireworks to celebrate the new year, rather than be used as a weapon of death?
How can I obtain some of the meat.♥️♥️🤘🤘
Delicious recipes for grizzly 🥳🥰🥰🥰
Ps. Sorry for the spelling errors. Just using a cell phone and there’s no way to correct on yhe website.
How can I get some of the grizzly bear meat ♥️♥️♥️♥️
Good eats 🥳🥰🥰🥰
Is grizzly bear & Black bear good to eat?
Whether you are a polar bear or a grizzly bear dont walk anywhere near the Kivalliq region cause you are gonna get taken out even if you arent a danger