Fort Providence (July 28/06) - Two bison that were setting up home in Fort Providence were destroyed last week.

The bison were establishing themselves in the sandy playground and had started to show signs of aggression, said Darren Campbell, the resource manager.

Renewable resource officers had spent a lot of time in the past month chasing the bulls out of the hamlet but they continued to return.

The first bull had established his territory over the past few years, Campbell said. The second bull was following the lead of the first. Together, they would stand in the playground with one facing north and the other south.

"They'd begun to believe it was their place and not a town," he said.

Both bulls lost their fear of people. If a vehicle was within five to six feet, they would display signs of aggression by putting their tails up and tensing, Campbell said.

The bulls kicked vehicles, knocked over fences in the playground and scraped along siding.

"It was a great deal of concern to the residents here," Campbell said.

The decision to destroy the bulls was not taken lightly, Campbell said. At a tri-council meeting on July 13, discussions were held to build a consensus on an urban bison control plan. It was decided that in extreme cases, dispatching re-offending problem animals was an option, he said.

The resource management board also met a number of times to discuss the problem.

Based on advice from the renewable resource officers, a senior resource management officer from Hay River came to destroy the animals, Campbell said.

Both animals were chased to the water plant away from residences before they were destroyed. Two tags that are part of the bison quota for band members were used to support the removal. The meat is being distributed to members of the community. The two adult bulls had been in the community since the spring, said Evelyn Krutko, a renewable resources officer with the Department of Environmental and Natural Resources.

Usually bison chased out of town with trucks and bangers do not return, but these animals were back within half an hour, Krutko said.

The bulls, weighing approximately 2,000 pounds, had become aggressive. In one instance they chased children up a fence. This is the first time Krutko can remember bison having to be destroyed in the hamlet.