Hot and dry conditions this summer has led to an increase in the number of bear calls in the Timmins area.
In fact, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry says it has had to deal with more than double the calls compared to this time last year.
The ministry is using these numbers as a teaching tool.
You've often heard the old saying ‘When coming face-to-face with a bear, don't play dead!’
That's just one of the myths about bears being debunked at an ecological awareness camp for high school students.
When students were asked what the bear would likely do if they played dead, one student replied:
"Uh, probably eat you."
Students were taught it's a good idea to carry bear spray when out in the bush and to not run away from bears, but to back away slowly.
The messages being taught are from natural resources bear experts. They take every opportunity to teach people about the importance of black bear safety.
Ministry officials tell CTV News that the Timmins District has received more than 560 calls about black bears this year, compared to around 200 at the same time last year.
They say the main reason for the increase is due to a lack of natural food sources, such as blueberries and mountain ash, as a result of dry conditions.
And, officials continue to hammer home the main reasons why bears come looking for food.
"Pick up your ripe apples from your apple trees. They're just trying to eat. They're just trying to survive the winter, that's all they're trying to do. So, that's why we encourage people to try to limit them from coming into your neighbourhood and clean up your trash. Put it out on garbage day." said Matt Werner of MNRF Bear Wise.
"I was surprised that bears can, when they relocate the bears, how they can come back and find exactly where they were." said a student participant.
The camp is also used as an opportunity to describe the variety of careers available in the natural resources sector.
"We had people talking about bats, about fish, about forestry, you name it, I think we covered it." said Robert O'Connor, camp organizer.
This is the third year for the camp. It's hosted by some retired teachers and Kidd Operations.
