According to the Ministry of Environment, there are somewhere in the neighbourhood of 43,000 black bears in Saskatchewan, and while most of them are in the northern part of the province, there seems to be more sightings in the southeast in recent years. In the last two years, there have been bear sightings in Fillmore, Kenosee Lake, and Carlyle, and with the bear population as high as it is up north, sightings in the southern portion of the province are becoming more common.

While they haven't taken notice of an increase in bears setting up shop in the southeast, Biologist with the Ministry of Environment Katherine Conkin says that last year seemed to have more reports of bears in the southeast region than they have in the past.

"Last year we had a handful of bear complaints or sightings in the region. Most of these sightings were people that were just surprised to see a bear. They weren't used to seeing them. We haven't received any complaints this year and only a few sightings (across the province). Spring is in full swing, and bears normally emerge from hibernation as the weather warms, kind of late March through April, so  it's that time of year where we're starting to see a bit more bears."

As for why bears are coming south as often as they have been lately, there's a good reason for it. When bears grow into adolescence, they start to search for their own territory. There isn't any large increase from the usual fluctuations of bear populations, but those young bears do still need places to go to find their own territory, so a few do come to the southeast to find their own spot.

"Black bear populations actually fluctuate naturally over time. There are reports of localized population increases that I would say those are more in the north and particularly northeast part of the province, not so much in the southeast."

There are a few spots in southeast Saskatchewan that will likely see bears this year compared to others. Kenosee Lake and the Qu'Appelle River Valley seem to be spots that they have frequented in the last few years, and it's because those areas meet a bear's habitat needs so well.

"I would say that anywhere there's habitat. Kenosee is a great area for bears. It's got a lot of habitat for them, so anywhere that there would be habitat along the Qu'Appelle Valley, the Saskatchewan River Valley and those sorts of areas. Poor weather conditions and localized food shortages, especially decreases in berry crops, both can create situations where black bears need to travel further in search of food, so they may be more visible at that time. "

On the off chance that you do have a run in with a black bear, Conkin shared some tips on how to deal with it. Stay calm, don't run or make direct eye contact, speak in low tones and make a wide detour around the bear if you need, don't ever feed cubs, and if the bear does decide to charge and you can't get to some sort of shelter or barrier, shedding clothes as a last resort can distract a bear and give you time to get to safety.