Wildlife & Education: Refuge for Endangered Wildlife

September 5, 2001
Grinder who had been found orphaned in Invermere, BC and Coola who was found orphaned at the side of the highway near Bella Coola BC were the first two resident grizzly bear cubs of the Grouse Mountain Refuge for Endangered Wildlife.

June 7, 2002
Cari and Boo, two more orphaned grizzly bear cubs arrive at Grouse Mountain. These cubs became orphans on June 4, 2002 when a man illegally shot and killed their mother off the side of Highway 26 outside of Wells near Quesnel, BC. The frightened cubs scrambled up a 50-foot-tree and would not budge. It took conservation officers a full day to retrieve them from their hiding spot. The Grouse Mountain Refuge for Endangered Wildlife was contacted by the Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection to see if a permanent home could be provided for the two orphaned cubs. Grouse Mountain agreed and the baby bears were flown to Vancouver. The man who shot and killed their mother has been convicted of two B.C. Wildlife Act violations and fined $9000.

March 1, 2002
Scout the Merlin is brought to Grouse Mountain from Quesnel, BC where she had been cared for since her families tree was felled, leaving her an orphan and homeless.

September 2002
“Hope”, the lone surviving wild Northern Spotted Owl chick of 2002 in B.C. is brought to the Grouse Mountain Refuge for Endangered Wildlife. Hope has been taken into captive care to increase her chances of surviving the winter following research indicating that only four Northern Spotted Owl chicks have been hatched this year in the entire province and that statistically, the first winter is the most crucial period for survival of juvenile Northern Spotted Owls.  The average mortality rate in their first winter for juvenile Northern Spotted Owls is known to be 75%. 

April 16, 2003
After successfully overwintering at Grouse Mountain, the Northern Spotted Owl “Hope” is released into the Skagit Valley.

May 31, 2003
Grinder and Coola are introduced to the expanded lower pond habitat.

July 8, 2003
Cari and Boo were relocated to Golden, BC to anchor the second phase of the grizzly bear rehabilitation project spearheaded by the Grouse Mountain Refuge for Endangered Wildlife. The one-year-old bears were transferred to the Kicking Horse Mountain Grizzly Bear Refuge where they were to preside over a new 22-acre habitat, the world's largest protected enclosed grizzly bear refuge. The transfer marked the second phase in the project, bringing researchers one step closer to developing a protocol for the rehabilitation and possible re-release of future orphaned grizzly cubs.

September 3, 2003
Grinder and Coola have access to the full 5 acres (upper and lower pond habitats).

October 26, 2003
Caliph and Emir the Peregrine Falcons came to Grouse Mountain from a wildlife rehabilitation. Both falcons had been taken to the centre to receive treatment for broken wings. Although they received treatment, their wings failed to heal well enough for them to survive on their own in the wild.

June 8, 2004
A pack of wolves is brought to the Grouse Mountain Refuge for Endangered Wildlife. They are retired film stars who were born into captivity and were hand raised and consequently, they are unable to be released into the wild.

December 5, 2004
Grinder and Coola are introduced to their new Hibernation Habitat, Hotel and Den.

December 12, 2004
Shakkai, a female Northern Spotted Owl, arrives at the Refuge for Endangered Wildlife from a local rehabilitation centre. Shakkai was struck by a truck in 1994 and due to her injuries has been in permanent care ever since.

September 2005
The education component of the Refuge for Endangered Wildlife doubles in size and now supports over  15,000  school children each year.

November 2005
The wolf pack is moved to a permanent habitat in the Grouse Mountain Valley. The habitat consists of 2.5 acres of natural mountainside with both open and forested regions for the wolves to explore.

April 2006
A permanent hummingbird monitoring station is established at the Refuge for Endangered Wildlife, the only mountain-top station in B.C. This station is part of a larger North American wide study of hummingbird movements and breeding locations. Notations are made on hummingbird movements on the mountaintop and birds are banded to study return rates. The numbers of Rufous Hummingbirds is showing an apparent decline province-wide.

July 28, 2007
The BC Ministry of Environment brings a juvenile male Spotted Owl to Grouse Mountain. This male represents the start of a captive breeding program to help supplement the rapidly diminishing numbers of Spotted Owls left in the wild. It is estimated that as of 2007 as few as 17 individual wild Spotted Owls remain within British Columbia.

For more information about the Grouse Mountain Refuge for Endangered Wildlife, you can call us at 604.980.9311.