Yellowknife (May 25/05) - Warmer spring days are drawing bears from their winter dens.

"We have both black bears and grizzly bears in the North Slave region," says Raymond Bourget of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

"The males will have begun coming out in April and the females start coming out in May, especially if they have cubs."

Bourget said bear sightings are common near Niven Lake, and around the Legislative Assembly, but they have also been seen in other areas about town.

"We encourage people to always report sightings," he said.

While bears are relatively hungry upon awakening, they usually are not ravenous and begin eating slowly, starting out with vegetation and roots, he said.

If bears are encountered, Bourget said the best thing to do is give the animal a wide berth.

"If you are camping, maintain a clean campsite; when you are travelling in the bush, make noise and be aware of the wind direction," he advised.

Bourget said the probability of a chance encounter with a bear on Yellowknife's walking trails is relatively low, and carrying a whistle as a precaution should suffice.

"You're not likely to meet anything there, but when you are further out in the field, be prepared. Have things you can use to scare the bear away."

Bourget said if a sudden encounter with a bear does occur, talk to the animal and do not play dead.

"In most cases, as soon as they realize you are a person, they are going to stop and back off.

"If you just run, it initiates the prey drive instinct. Bears do hunt caribou, hares, moose calves, so it's like dogs that chase bicycles.

"With black bears, you are generally better off fighting back than playing dead."

Bourget also said the department will host free bear safety sessions upon request.

The courses run about two hours and provide information about bear behaviour, reactions and responses.

Last year there were two reports of grizzly attacks on humans.

One was on a man at the abandoned Colomac mine, about 230km north of Yellowknife; the other was on a couple who were on a South Nahanni River trip.