‘Enough is enough’: Arviat hunter decries low polar bear hunt quota
There have been numerous encounters with bears this year, says Alex Ishalook
Alex Ishalook, chair of the Arviat Hunters and Trappers Organization and vice-chair of the Kivalliq Wildlife Board, addresses government biologists during the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board meeting in Arviat on Oct. 30. (Screen shot courtesy of Nunavut Wildlife Management Board)
Updated on Friday, Nov. 1, 2024 at 6:10 p.m. ET
Polar bear harvest quotas are compromising food security and making hamlets more dangerous places, says the chair of Arviat’s hunters and trappers organization.
Alex Ishalook vented his concerns to the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board Thursday during a meeting in Arviat.
Ishalook also serves as vice-chair of the Kivalliq Wildlife Board.
“There’s been lots and lots of encounters by polar bears — damages to cabins, close calls, people being chased by polar bears around here in the community,” he said. “Our concerns are getting stronger and stronger.”
He also said the hamlet grieved the loss of a resident to a polar bear attack in July 2018. Aaron Gibbons died protecting his children from a bear while they were out hunting eggs.
Boaters regularly see mothers and cubs on the points and peninsulas, as well as bears frequenting the dump, Ishalook said, adding that when children skate on the nearby ponds, polar bears pass close by.
As well, caribou, aged caribou and fermented muktuk form the primary diet for Kivalliq residents, but access to these foods is compromised by the prevalence of the apex predator, Ishalook said.
“It’s coming to a point where we are not going to follow [reduced quotas] anymore. Enough is enough,” Ishalook said. “I apologize if I’m too aggressive for now, but that’s the feeling that the community at large is at.”
The Kivalliq Wildlife Board allocated 14 polar bear tags to Arviat this year. Ishalook wants the region to return to a pre-2007 quota of 20 tags.
“We’re fighting between the communities to get the best pie out of the quota,” he said. “Just give [the quota] back to us so we are not fighting between the communities.”
Canada’s polar bear population is divided into 13 subpopulations. Arviat hunts the Western Hudson Bay subpopulation.
“The Western Hudson Bay sub-population is stable and there are no concerns with the current harvest level,” said Jalen Tagoona, manager of communications with Department of Environment, in an email to Nunatsiaq News.
The latest hunt statistics, from 2020-21, document a harvest in Canada of 475 polar bears with an additional 100 bears harvested outside of Canada in subpopulations that Canada shares with Greenland and the United States.
Harvest levels represent approximately three per cent of the estimated total population size of more than 17,000 polar bears found in the 13 subpopulations in Canada. Canada is home to two-thirds of the estimated global bear population.
Throughout the past two decades, most subpopulations have been managed with the goal of maintaining the current population size.
Recent trends in loss of sea ice have modified polar bear distribution, foraging behaviour and access to ringed seals, particularly in the southern areas of their range.
Correction: This story has been updated from its originally published version to correct the number of polar bear tags issued by the Kivalliq Wildlife Board to Arviat.
17,000 bears in Canada and Kivalliq wants 20 tags instead of 14. Just give it to them.
Thats what i was thinking as well…although that is 17,000 in all of Canada, so not a great number to compare to).
also if 6 more tags will keep the community safe I am surprised. I would think with the numbers polar bears around he should be requesting like 14 additional tags to keep the community safe. 6 wont do enough.
It is the wind that changes weather, it’s always windy, our health always detioriates, they got non Inuit businesses that stinks up the whole town. Inuit controlled places with less experiince that does anyhow, not really safe.
It is a caribou community where their dependants depend upon caribous. It’s probably new generation moved their in early community built stages, that comes from polar bear hunting family. It’s only them, but locals are not first to be picked for anything.
There has never been more polar bears in Nunavut before, that last decade we have notice so many more bears, communities that never used to have issues for bears before bore have so many coming into town, that used to not happen. The last 50 years were communities did not have much encounters of bears now have to be very vigilant and people have been killed.
I know there is so much pressure from city slickers of all over the world to protect these bears but enough is enough, we can manage fine and manage the number of bears, there are too many now, younger hungry bears are coming into communities now, these young teenage bears are dangerous and curious. The big old bears drive them away and they wonder into communities.
Polar bears has bad attitudes that’s why they are like that. Other animals don’t even bother hunters. It’s just they they got really bad attitudes.
Good animals bad humans? There is a point between all living things which we have to respect the other beings space. Have we?
For Rankin Inlet, Polar Bears are being spotted all summer on both north and south sides along the coast and closer to the community and its obvious the later freeze up and earlier spring thaw are showing the increase in Polar Bear sightings and incidents, Local HTO’s and KWB should look into hiring more full time Bear Patrol for both summer, Fall, winter and spring and provide them with ATV’s, snowmobiles, gas, and ammo, along with Bear bangers.
It’s time to start marketing Arviat as the Polar Bear capitol of the world… Lets take the title away from Churchill MB. The truth is that no one lives in Churchill, the dump that attracted them there in the first place has been closed and fenced so you don’t get the same population there. Climate change has started driving bears father north where it is colder longer… Lets use the bear increase to drive tourism. Set-up bear observations areas and start taking away from Churchill, lets see an economy boom for Polar Bear enthusiasts. Especially if Kivalliqmuit can’t get increased hunting and harvesting tags. The numbers show that an increase in tags is sustainable and if it’s not then lets use Bears as a different form of resource (tourism). Where is our politicians and organizations like Travel Nunavut to tap into this potential?
First you would have to let alcohol in, then build the bars, or do you to rob to tourists as there is nothing to spend your dollars on. People want to have a beer or 3 when travelling. Can you do that in arviat?
With the commercial Harp seal hunt on the East Coast in shambles, the Harp seal population is booming. Large packs of Harp seals are migrating all over the Eastern Arctic
Harp seal packs 30 years ago would range in the 10’s of seals, now we are seeing harp seal packs in the hundreds all across the Eastern Arctic.
With this booming seal population, more female bears are giving birth to two or three cub instead of just one. Scientists do not want to admit it for fear of losing their funding but we hunters see this happening
There have been more fatal Polar Bear attacks on humans in the past 10 years than the pervious 30 years
When you think about it Inuit population in Nunavut is less than 30,000. If you ask me we are more of an endangered than Polar Bears. We are struggling to keep out language culture, traditions alive especially in communities like Iqaluit Rankin Inlet and Cam Bay where the main language spoken is now English and not Inuktitut or Inuinaqtun.
“Recent trends in loss of sea ice have modified polar bear distribution, foraging behaviour and access to ringed seals, particularly in the southern areas of their range.”
There are no climate trends that are perceptible by any layman
Some ideas are so unique. I have heard of horse whispers and dog whispers. Now there is a polar bear whisper. Guess after years of whispering to polars bears. You come to the conclusion. The only thing that is wrong with them is they have a bad attitude.