Whistler Blackcomb is home to several black bear families. Local bear researcher, Michael Allen, has been hired to study bears and track their activities. Michael has been conducting research for more than 10 years and is the local authority on black bears. Michael has identified eight bear families on Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains and has tracked their eating, mating, migration, and hibernation activities. This data is used to improve and preserve bear habitat. From June through October, you can join Michael Allen or other guides on a
Black Bear Tour.
Hazel
Hazel is a brown-phase black bear who was first identified in May 1994. She is assumed to be one of the oldest mothers in the ski area, between 10-15 years old. She produced a black and a brown cub in 1996. She reared the cubs for 19 months, separating from her yearlings on July 1, 1997. She has mated every early summer until 1999 but has never produced cubs due to lack of an abundant fall berry crop required for pre-denning weight gain. If mothers do not reach a peak weight prior to entering their winter den in late October the pregnancy will naturally abort. Hazel concentrates her spring-summer activities on Whistler Mountain.
Hanna
Hanna is black and was first identified in May 1994. She produced one black cub in 1994 and two black cubs in 1996. Hanna has mated each year but has also failed to produce further cubs. This poor reproductive fitness of ski area mothers reflects the importance of fall berry crops. The increased frequency of failures may be due to extreme weather changes. Hanna's territory is centred on Whistler Mountain. Hanna's daughter Willow is easily recognizable by her two white patches on the neck and chest.
Katie
Katie is black with a solid white chest V. She is very shy around people and does not usually tolerate close human activity. Katie was first identified in May 1995 as a three-year-old and mated for the first time during June of 1996. Her first litter of two black cubs mirrors her image of a brown muzzle and white chest V. Katie is the only mother studied that has kept her cubs into their third year. She centres their feeding activities on lower Whistler Mountain during the spring and ascends to the mid-mountain elevation in later summer. Reasons are unknown why she kept her offspring this long.
Jeanie
Jeanie is a large dark brown-phase black bear, first identified in May 1995 on Blackcomb Mountain. She frequently travels back and forth between the mountains depending on other bears and food availability. Jeanie is a large brown with a large wide tan chest V who grazes along Haulback and under the lower parts of the Wizard Chair Lift. She is a passive animal with an extreme tolerance of human activity. Jeanie produced a black and a brown cub in 1998. The family was the focus of bear activity filmed in the ski area for a BBC documentary 'In the Company of Bears'. Jeanie remained on Whistler Mountain for most of 1998. She lost her brown daughter to unknown causes (possibly males or coyotes) when she travelled to Blackcomb for a week and then returned to Whistler with only her son. Willy is Jeanie's son and will eventually disperse from the ski area. Willy has a small white chest V and is also very tolerant of people.
Marisa
Marisa is black with a small white chest patch that is difficult to see except when she stands. She was first identified in May 1995 and has produced one black female cub in 1996 and a single brown-phase daughter during 1998. The family has frequented the lower elevations of Blackcomb and greens of the Chateau Whistler Golf Course. She was observed in late June 1999 still with her yearling.
Matilda
Matilda is black with a small white chest patch. She had the only 1999 cub in the ski area and remained on Blackcomb. Matilda and her lone daughter Bonnie graze the mid-mountain elevations near the Wizard-Solar chair lifts.
