Credits: @melissa_ila on Instagram

Chilliwack’s beauty is enjoyed by locals and visitors year-round. A main attraction is Chilliwack’s bustling wildlife in its parks and forests. Here are our tips on wildlife etiquette for you to follow to help Chilliwack’s wildlife to continue to thrive:

• Learn about what wildlife you might see on your trip before visiting the area, so you know how to handle encounters properly.
• Stay alert and be aware of your surroundings.
• Always stay on designated trails and respect closures and restrictions.
• Never feed wildlife. Feeding wildlife grows their dependence on the food provided by humans which leads to more human interactions and close interactions with animals can be dangerous.
• Keep a respectful and reasonable distance, you can use binoculars or a zoom lens to get a closer look.
• Do not try to save what appears to be abandoned animals. Young animals are rarely far from their mothers, so they are probably okay!
• Stay especially clear of mothers with their young as they will be focused on protecting them.
• Do not try to pet or interact with wildlife as it can lead to dangerous situations.
• If there are proper facilities for it, store your food in bear proof storages. Or suspend your food at least four metres off the ground between two trees and one metre from either of the two trees.
• Dispose of any trash or food remains properly to avoid attracting bears.
• Pack out what you pack in. Do not leave any garbage behind as wildlife can consume it and cause serious harms to themselves.
• If you are camping, keep the campsite clean. Leave as little lying out as possible.
• Keep your pets on a leash as you never know how they may interact with the wildlife.

Here are some resources to learn more about wildlife etiquette:

Follow along with our blogs in this series about protecting this gift that is the land we live, work and play on.