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(CNN) - With the hibernation period rapidly approaching, a family of grizzly bears looks for fish near the shores of Knight Inlet in Canada. And they look emaciated.
The heartbreaking images, captured by a Canadian photographer, have aroused the concern of wildlife watchers. They worry if the bear and the two cubs will even survive the hibernation period.
It also sheds light on another victim of the climate crisis and the depletion of the wild salmon population.
Knight Inlet is a leading tourist spot in British Columbia, Canada, for the observation of grizzly bears. Visitors from all over the world come to enjoy nature and admire wildlife.
The First Nation of Mamalilikulla has been monitoring bears, specifically those of Hoeya Sound and Lull Bay, for several years.
"They have changed dramatically in a couple of months," Jake Smith, guardian guard manager for the First Nation of Mamalilikulla, told CNN. "The bears are in trouble."
Smith said that when he saw the images on Friday, he knew he had to do something to help. The main food source of bears, salmon, is at its lowest point in the area. Commercial fishermen in British Columbia say it is the worst salmon season in almost 50 years.
A report published by Fisheries and Oceans Canada in August indicated that Canada's climate is warming twice as fast as the world average, dramatically impacting salmon ecosystems. The report also cited marine heat waves, increased flooding and droughts as the cause of greater stress on the fish.
Smith organized the distribution of 500 salmon, donated by the A-Tlegay Fisheries Society on Vancouver Island, along the coasts that frequent the grizzlies. On Sunday, the volunteers piled the fish in boxes with ice and took them by boat to the area. Smith said the bears were there and began eating the fish immediately.
"We were about 30 feet (9 meters) away from them," Smith said. "A little brown bear looked at us and the mother bear went out to look for the fish."
While this is only a small step to help the bears, the First Nation will now continue to monitor them for updates.
Why is there less wild salmon?
The wild salmon population has steadily declined in the British Columbia area in recent years. Last month, commercial fishing advocates asked the government for humanitarian help for the industry.
"The impacts of this climate change disaster have been all along the coast," said Joy Thorkelson, president of the United Union of Fishermen and Allied Workers, at a press conference in September.
The warmer weather has affected water temperature and salmon growth this year, according to CTV, a CNN news partner.
Another factor for the loss of the wild salmon population is open-net fish farming which, according to critics, is spreading diseases and pollution in the water.
"Everywhere in the world where there is salmon farming there is a decrease in the population of wild salmon," said biologist Alexandra Morton, who has been investigating the effects of breeding for the past 30 years. According to Morton, this type of crop allows the waste to be added back to the water and exposes the wild salmon population to viruses.
In December, the British Columbia government together with First Nations created a plan for the transition of open-net breeding by 2023 so that the wild salmon population can recover. The Canadian Aquaculture Industry Alliance defends open-network agriculture as environmentally sustainable and says that plans to eliminate it are "a reckless policy, not based on science."
Bears must travel far to eat
Rolf Hicker, a wildlife photographer, took pictures of thin bears while taking a boat ride. He published them on Facebook on September 23.
"We saw this mother with her two little ones a couple of weeks ago and then we saw her again just a few days ago," he published. "I have no idea how I could spend the winter without salmon."
More than half of Canada's grizzly bear population lives in British Columbia and its average weight is 100 to 400 kilos, according to the Canadian Nature Conservancy. They collect berries and plants, but salmon is their main source of food.
Hicker told CNN that not all the bears he has seen are so thin, but most are not healthy.
Smith and Hicker said the grizzlies are starting to relocate and go from island to island to other areas, including Vancouver Island, in search of food.
"Provincial biologists cannot confirm why bears appear to be in poor condition," said a statement from the Ministry of Forests, Land, Natural Resources Operations and Rural Development in the province.
"If the salmon currents in the area are lower than expected, this will have an additional effect and the bears will have to travel further to find food."
Grizzly bears hibernate for five to seven months each year and live off the fat accumulated during the summer and fall months, according to the National Park Service. If the bears go into hibernation thinner than normal, this could affect the number of puppies they have, according to Parks Canada.
"The Grizzlies are not native to Vancouver Island," said Hicker. “They are spending all their energy swimming to go somewhere else. They are forced to do it for food. ”
Swanson Island, about an hour's boat ride from Knight Inlet, is another place where grizzlies appear, Smith said.
"They were approaching our camps and we are seeing them in areas where we rarely see bears," Rick Snowdon, owner of Spirit of The West, told CNN. Take tourists to Swanson Island for camping and kayaking.
Snowdon said that while they have not had a negative interaction with bears, they have had to insist that guests be careful.
"I've seen several grizzlies with puppies," he said. "They definitely looked thin."
The natural resources ministry told CNN that they will meet with First Nations on Thursday to discuss the situation.
Canada is not the only area that faces problems with wild salmon populations. This summer, the heat wave in Alaska resulted in scientists finding hundreds of dead salmon due to heat stress.
Bears
