Critical factors contributing to wildlife-human interaction in the Wind Valley natural area: implications for management

The Wind Valley Natural Area, designated by the Province of Alberta in 1995, is located just east of the Town of Canmore, 15 minutes drive from the boundary of Banff National Park, and approximately an hour from Calgary, Alberta. This area contains a rich diversity of flora and wildlife and offers a wide variety of recreational opportunities. Increasing pressure on this Natural Area and the adjacent community of Canmore are predicted through year 2010 as these areas attempt to accommodate the overflow of tourists and service demands from the National Parks and as they adjust to the development of international resort destinations in the Bow Valley. The recently released management plan for the Wind Valley Natural Area (Anonymous, 1996) identifies the maintenance of ecological integrity as a primary objective. In light of this objective and the ev\\dence of increased recreational and developmental pressures in the Bow Valley corridor, the problem of human-wildlife interaction needs to be understood and addressed. The Wind Valley Natural Area contains critical patch and corridor systems for two large mammal species, bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis canadensis) and grizzly bears (Ursus arctos horribilis). These mega fauna function as umbrella species and by managing for their biological and ecological requirements the habitat needs of many other smaller mammal species may be met. This study was an attempt to integrate the ecological implications and social context of the problem of wildlife-human interaction in the Wind Valley Natural Areas with the objective of developing a site specific strategy for mitigating current and potential conflicts. This document contains a review of the context for the problem of human-wildlife interaction, the history of the problem, and the factors that contribute to this interaction in the Wind Valley Natural Area. Field data collected over the summer and fall of 1995 on the use of habitat in the Wind Valley Natural Area by bighorn sheep and grizzly bears are summarized and human use was determined through a self-administered survey instrument. These data were used to identify areas of current and potential human-wildlife conflict. Management strategies proposed were based on the present status of the wildlife populations and habitat use with consideration of the possible risks associated with current trends and processes in the Bow Valley corridor. A number of models for evaluating human-wildlife interaction were evaluated and recommendations include suggestions for implementing a long-term monitoring program based on a number of indicators identified in the literature. The problems of the complexity of cause-effect relationships and the lack of baseline data remain limitations to this study.