Raccoons in Alberta? Increased sightings indicate they're moving further north
A northern Alberta photographer says he was shocked to find a raccoon in footage captured by one of his trail cameras last month.
When asked why he spends hours upon hours setting up cameras on crown land south of Grande Prairie, photographer Amos Wiebe says he likes to "meet these creatures face to face."
By "these creatures," he means bears, wolves, lynx – the sort of animals known to inhabit northern Alberta and which he has built a business on photographing.
But just before midnight on Sept. 12, Wiebe's cameras captured something they never had before: a raccoon.
In the footage, a tail moves, then a head with glowing eyes turns toward the camera. The raccoon eventually trots to a tree stump where it pauses for a moment before leaving the frame.
"At first it was like, 'That might be fisher on camera. We've always wanted to get a fisher on camera…No, it's a raccoon!" Wiebe recalled.
"It's probably not good," he told CTV News Edmonton. "They're cute but anybody that knows raccoons, they can be a big pest."
SIGHTINGS 'RARE' BUT 'INCREASING': BIOLOGIST
Wiebe's cameras were set up about 20 kilometres south of Grande Prairie, a city of more than 67,000 about 450 kilometres northwest of Edmonton.
According to University of Alberta biologist and professor Colleen Cassady St. Clair, raccoons have been found in Canada's northern territories.
However, she called the animal an "urban exploiter," a creature so skilled at hacking humans' garbage bins and climbing to fruit or eggs in trees that it has earned the reputation of "trash panda."
She said sightings in Edmonton are "rare" but that the number of reports she receives from residents are increasing.
A raccoon is captured by a trail camera in Edmonton in this undated photo. (Credit: University of Alberta and City of Edmonton)
She was recently notified of raccoons in the Big Lake area just outside city limits.
"Climate change could be playing a role, but raccoons have been detected as far north as the Yukon, so I'm not sure they're limited by temperature. They might be limited by moisture and the Edmonton area is getting wetter with climate change," she said, explaining the animal likes to use water to learn about its food.
"So it might be the dryness, more so than the coldness, of our winters that limits raccoons."
The problem with the Big Lake report was that it wasn't a single raccoon spotted, Cassady St. Clair said, but a family.
Family of raccoons spotted in the Big Lake, Alta., area on Sept. 22, 2022.
"If there's now families of raccoons being spotted in places like that, it means that they are establishing a breeding population and they have the capacity to increase exponentially."
"We're starting to see more and more skunks around," Wiebe said. "We used to have hardly any 20 years ago and now we're littered with skunks, so you gotta wonder where this is going. Maybe we'll have a lot of raccoon problems down here down the road."
RACCOON RISKS
While some find them cute, raccoons are a problem, Cassady St. Clair emphasized.
Not only do they destroy property, but they are also carriers of several parasites and diseases that can be passed to humans and pets. Rabies is the best known but is less common than roundworm, or Baylisascaris, the biologist told CTV News Edmonton. Raccoon roundworm can cause serious illness in people and dogs.
Cassady St. Clair says Edmonton should be considering taking action now to prevent the raccoon population from growing.
"They're really cute animals, they're so clever, that you can't help but be fascinated by raccoons. But by the time citizens have realized they really don't want them living among them, it's too late," she said.
In a statement, the city told CTV News Edmonton raccoons have been in the city for more than 25 years but are not monitored.
On the "extremely rare occasion" the city receives a complaint, a wildlife contractor or park ranger will investigate, the spokesperson wrote.
And if raccoons become a nuisance on private property, they're advised to contact a pest management company.
NO REMOVAL POLICY IN ALBERTA
In a statement to CTV News Edmonton, Alberta Environment and Parks said that while Alberta's raccoon population has traditionally resided largely in the province's southeast, in recent years, raccoon territory has expanded to central and northeastern Alberta.
On its website, it encourages residents dealing with raccoons to remove potential food – including bird feed – from their property, dismantle their dens, and contact the local municipality or pest control companies for help.
It also says people should wear protective gear when clearing out dens and advises pet owners to keep their animals' shots up to date.
Alberta Environment and Parks also told CTV News Edmonton that while raccoons are not native to Alberta, population numbers are not expanding at an alarming rate and – at this point – Alberta does not intend to develop policy to take action to reduce or remove raccoons.
Cassady St. Clair also asked residents to make a report on the public crowdsourced site iNaturalist.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
What do weight loss drugs mean for a diet industry built on eating less and exercising more?
Recent injected drugs like Wegovy and its predecessor, the diabetes medication Ozempic, are reshaping the health and fitness industries.
2 military horses that broke free and ran loose across London are in serious condition
Two military horses that bolted and ran miles through the streets of London after being spooked by construction noise and tossing their riders were in a serious condition and required operations, a British government official said Thursday.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
He replaced Mickey Mantle. Now baseball's oldest living major leaguer is turning 100
The oldest living former major leaguer, Art Schallock turns 100 on Thursday and is being celebrated in the Bay Area and beyond as the milestone approaches.
What a urologist wants you to know about male infertility
When opposite sex couples are trying and failing to get pregnant, the attention often focuses on the woman. That’s not always the case.
Made-in-Newfoundland vodka claims top prize at worldwide competition
A Newfoundland-made vodka has been named one of the world’s best by judges at this year’s World Vodka Awards.