Lynda Mackey had an unexpected guest show up to her cottage along the shoreline of Lake Huron on Monday. One that she’s never seen in her 20 years of owning the place.
It was a Black bear, who is on the move between through Huron County, between Bayfield and St. Joseph’s, Ont.
“I received a call from a neighbour saying that there was a bear heading our way, so my husband and I took a quick peek outside and lo and behold, there was the bear on our next door neighbour’s front lawn,” Mackey told CBC’s Afternoon Drive on Wednesday.
“We quickly ran inside and watched from our window as it worked its way around lakeside.”
Mackey believes the bear was on the hunt for some food and found a place to dine after discovering a bird feeder hanging on her front lawn, she said.
“The bear had no interest in humans, it was just looking for food, so it stuck around for about 45 minutes to an hour just having a lovely meal on the bird feed that we have,” she said.
Don’t keep food or garbage out, OPP say
Although Mackey has heard of bear sightings in the area over the years, she and her family never thought they would be this close to one, she said.
She describes the animal as a typical Black bear, which didn’t look too massive in size while it was on all fours. That changed when it stood up, she said.
“When they stood on their hind legs they were easily probably between give and six feet tall and it was a little bit more intimidating for sure,” she said. “We were glad we were inside.”
After the bear left, Mackey said she took the bird feed down and was told by a bear sighting hotline that since the animal found food at her cottage, there’s a high chance it will return for seconds.
Huron Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) are also aware of the bear and they’re advising residents to secure garbage cans and bird feeders, and to clean their barbecue grills for any residue that may attract them to come back.
The OPP are reminding the public to report sightings to the Ministry of Natural Resources and to call 9-1-1 if their safety is threatened.
<a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/HuronOPP?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#HuronOPP</a> is making the public aware of a bear that has been seen several times in the <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/Bayfield?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#Bayfield</a> to <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/StJosephs?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#StJosephs</a> communities in the past few days. Secure garbage cans, bird feeders, and report sightings to the <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/MNRF?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#MNRF</a> for tracking purposes. Call 911 if safety is threatened. ^cs. <a href=”https://t.co/BwCO6xE1CE”>pic.twitter.com/BwCO6xE1CE</a>
—@OPP_WR
“They don’t want the bears to feel like this is an OK space to be, they just want them to continue to move along and go to wherever it was that they were heading to,” Mackey said.
LISTEN | Lynda Mackey tells Afternoon Drive about the bear she spotted at her cottage:
Afternoon Drive4:34Black bear spotted in Huron County
A black bear has been spotted in Huron County in recent days, along the shoreline of Lake Huron between Bayfield and St. Joseph’s. Lynda Mackey lives in the area, and met the bear herself. She shares more with host Allison Devereaux.
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