Parc Canada déplore les comportements dangereux de visiteurs avec des ours

A grizzly bear and her two cubs is seen on a field at Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, United States, July 6, 2015. REUTERS/Jim Urquhart/File Photo

Si les touristes se font régulièrement répéter de ne pas s'approcher trop près des animaux sauvages qu'ils croisent dans les montagnes, des agents de Parcs Canada déplorent que les cas continuent de survenir.

Un des incidents les plus récents impliquait un grizzly nourri au travers d'une barrière, près d'une route située dans les environs du lac Louise, au parc national de Banff.

Des dizaines de visiteurs se sont rassemblés pour observer la scène. Certains se tenaient à quelques pas seulement de l'ours.

Un enfant s'est même dirigé en direction de l'ours en passant au travers de la barrière, ont indiqué les autorités du parc, soulignant que ce geste est extrêmement dangereux.

Ce genre de rassemblements de visiteurs, que les autorités du parc appellent des "bearjams", sont ponctués de "comportements stupides et irresponsables", croit un ancien surintendant du parc national de Banff, Kevin Van Tighem.

Selon lui, non seulement ces individus se mettent-ils en danger, mais ils peuvent aussi provoquer des problèmes à long terme chez l'animal.

L'ours nourri dernièrement au travers d'une barrière a l'habitude d'avoir des contacts avec des humains, a-t-il expliqué. C'est justement ce qui le préoccupe au sujet de cet animal qui, à six ans, est en âge de se reproduire.

"Plus vous augmentez le nombre d'interactions et de situations stressantes entre les ours et les hommes, plus les risques d'attaques sont grands, a-t-il fait valoir. Si ce n'est pas dans l'immédiat, alors (ce sera) subséquemment."

Idéalement, les agents de Parcs Canada souhaiteraient que les automobilistes qui croisent un ours sur la route ralentissent sans s'arrêter complètement. Si toutefois ils doivent le faire, il est mieux que l'arrêt soit court et que l'automobile se trouve à une distance raisonnable de l'animal.

VOIR AUSSI:

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Knut, the polar bear cub, has his first public appearance in the Berlin Zoo Friday, March 23, 2007. Television crews and photographers jockeyed with hundreds of excited children at Berlin's Zoo on Friday, all eager for a first glimpse of the fuzzy white polar bear cub who has captured hearts across the globe. (AP Photo/Herbert Knosowski)

MARKUS SCHREIBER/AP

Knut, the polar bear cub, has his first public appearance in the Berlin Zoo Friday, March 23, 2007.Television crews and photographers jockeyed with hundreds of excited children at Berlin's Zoo on Friday, all eager for a first glimpse of the fuzzy white polar bear cub who has captured hearts across the globe. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

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FRANKA BRUNS/AP

Knut, the polar bear cub, rolls in the sand during his first public appearance in the Berlin Zoo on Friday, March 23, 2007. Television crews and photographers jockeyed with hundreds of excited children at Berlin's Zoo on Friday, all eager for a first glimpse of the fuzzy white polar bear cub who has captured hearts across the globe. (AP Photo/Franka Bruns)

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Knut, the polar bear cub, rolls in the sand during his first public appearance in the Berlin Zoo.

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Polar bear Knut plays with snow balls, at his enclosure at the zoo in Berlin, Germany, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2009. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn)

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Berlin's famous polar bear Knut reacts in the snow at the zoo in Berlin, Germany, on Friday, Jan. 8, 2010. Germany faces some heavy winter days with much snow and cold temperatures down to minus 15 degrees Celsius, (5 degrees Fahrenheit) at night. A snow storm all over Germany is expected for the weekend. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

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Polar bear Knut sticks out his tongue in his enclosure in the zoo in Berlin on Tuesday, April 8, 2008. (AP Photo/Miguel Villagran)

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FILE - In this Dec. 5, 2010 file photo, polar bear Knut stands behind his 'birthday cake' to celebrate his 4th birthday in the Zoo of Berlin, Germany. A Berlin zoo official says world-famous polar bear Knut has died. Bear keeper Heiner Kloes said that four-year-old Knut died Saturday afternoon March 19, 2011 while alone in his compound. He says the cause is not yet clear. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn, File)

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Berlin's famous polar bear Knut reacts at the snow at the zoo in Berlin, Germany, on Friday, Jan. 8, 2010. Germany faces some heavy winter days with much snow and cold temperatures down to minus 15 degrees Celsius (5 degrees Fahrenheit) at night. A snow storm all over Germany is expected for the weekend. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

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BERLIN, GERMANY - AUGUST 23: Two-year-old polar bear Wolodja walks in his enclosure at Tiergarten Berlin zoo on August 23, 2013 in Berlin, Germany. The zoo recently aquired Wolodja from a zoo in Moscow and zoo authorities are hoping he will pair with a female polar bear to impregnate her with a cub. Another polar bear cub, Knut, rose to world fame after he was born at Zoo Berlin zoo and was rejected by his mother. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

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Late polar bear Knut is on display at the Natural History Museum in Berlin, Friday, Feb. 15, 2013. Adorable in life, still attracting admirers in death: Knut the polar bear's hide has been mounted on a polyurethane body and is going on display in a Berlin museum. The Natural History Museum on Friday unveiled the statue prepared by taxidermists featuring the famous Berlin Zoo bear's fur and claws, with the synthetic body and glass eyes. Knut was hand-raised after his mother rejected him. He rose to stardom in 2007 as a cuddly cub, appearing on magazine covers, in a film and on mountains of merchandise. He died in 2011 after suffering from encephalitis. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)