Bear watching and larger wildlife conservation areas the only answer to protect diverse and rare bears in the Great Bear Rainforest

What: Media are invited to meet with First Nations Spirit Bear expert and guardian Doug Neasloss, ‘Muq Vas Glaw’, the lead guide and cultural interpreter at Spirit Bear Adventures, from Klemtu, British Columbia. www.spiritbear.com

Over the past ten years Neasloss has been tracking, studying and working actively to provide protection for the Spirit Bears, which are only found in British Columbia.

He is available to speak about the importance of protecting the Spirit Bears and about how eco-cultural tourism is also playing a central role in raising awareness about the need for more protection.

Offering the world one of the most unique eco-cultural experiences in Canada, Spirit Bear Adventures is a First Nations owned and operated company on the central coast of British Columbia that conducts four and seven day tours within their ancestral lands and traditional territory.

Who: Doug Neasloss is one of the most knowledgeable and experienced Spirit Bear guides and was recently awarded the Young Adult Achievement Award by Aboriginal Tourism BC.

When: Neasloss will be at the AtBC Kla-how-ya Aboriginal Village from 9:30am to 5:00pm from Tuesday, February 23 through Friday, February 26.

Where: AtBC Kla-how-ya Aboriginal Village in the Pan Pacific Hotel on the 3rd floor of 999 Canada Place, Vancouver. Visit www.aboriginalbc.com for complete information.

About the Spirit Bears:
The rare Spirit Bear is only found in British Columbia, with the highest concentration being found in the Great Bear Rainforest. The Spirit Bears are believed to be a genetic variation of the Black Bears that are found throughout the province. The presence of a single recessive gene is responsible for the white coat that as many as one in ten of these bears are born with. It is estimated that there are less than 400 Spirit Bears in the world.

The Legend of the Spirit Bears
The Kitasoo/Xaixais First Nations people, who have lived on the central coast of British Columbia with the Spirit Bears for thousands of years, have a myth that says, “Raven made one in every ten black bears white to remind the people of a time when glaciers covered this land and to remind the people that they should be thankful of the lush and bountiful land of today.” Many of the Kitasoo/Xaixais believe the Spirit bears hold super-natural powers, hence the name Spirit Bear – a name that suits its mythical like presence.