A bear that appeared to be visiting Victoria from Fort St. James highlights both the perks and challenges of an interactive website that plots wildlife encounters in B.C.

A browse through the Victoria-area using the , found expected results B次元官网网址� a plethora of deer and the occasional bear and cougar B次元官网网址� and the surprise guest from northern B.C.

The service, provided by , uses daily data from the Conservation Officer Service as well as self-reported sightings by the public, to show on a map where wildlife is interacting with people.

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B次元官网网址淭hatB次元官网网址檚 the challenge that we have. A spelling mistake can cause an error in the data and we canB次元官网网址檛 verify each individual sighting,B次元官网网址� said Frank Ritcey, senior provincial WildSafeBC coordinator. B次元官网网址淏ut the real value in this service is seeing trends over time. We can see if there is an increase in wildlife encounters in certain areas over the years, or find areas where garbage as an attractant is a big problem.B次元官网网址�

Garbage is the number one attractant cited in reports to the Conservation Officer Service hotline.

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The site allows the public to search an area based on time frame, species, encounter type and more. They can also sign up to get alerts whenever bears, cougars or other wildlife are seen in their area.

By clicking on the animal icons on the map, users can see if there was a suspected attractant involved in the reported sightings B次元官网网址� whether that be garbage, livestock, pets or otherwise.

The resource is also rich with information on wildlife and provides suggestions on how to live in harmony with different species.

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So far over 750,000 alerts have been sent out to the 1,000 users who have registered and chosen to receive alerts, according to Ritcey. The site does not require people to register, with Ritcey estimating the total users since its inception in 2012 to be around 10,000.