Guides in the Great Bear Rainforest have noticed a significant decline in the number of brown bears. The brown bears are a major attraction to BC, responsible for millions of dollars in tourist trade. The Canadian fisheries department reports four years of extremely low chum salmon runs, a favorite grizzly food because of its high fat content and longevity in fresh water. The bears need the fish to put on weight before a long winter hibernation. Conservationists blame the Canadian government for ignoring their concerns for declining salmon numbers and allowing over fishing. They have urged the closing of the annual fall grizzly hunt and closing of all chum salmon fisheries on the central and northern coasts. In 2008 records show the lowest number of chum salmon caught since 1996. The ten year average is 106,000; in 2008 only 3,008 chum salmon were netted. This summer the Canadian government closed an additional 470,000 hectares (1,814 sq. mi.) to hunting bring the total to 1.9 million hectares (7,335 sq. mi.). In 2008 the estimate of BC's grizzly population was revised downward to 16,014, a loss of 873 bears.[photo courtesy Muir's Tours, British Columbia]