okanagan bear
This black bear, photographed near Okanagan Falls, could adorn the BC SPCA's 2026 calendar.
An Okanagan black bear, momentarily distracted from his foraging by a photographer, is among the BC wild animals contending tor a place in the BC SPCA鈥檚 2026 calendar.

Faolan Covert took this picture of the bear on June 14 near Okanagan Falls. “He looked up at me for a minute, then went back to eating,” Cover said. 

As of Monday, Covert’s picture had received the 10th highest number of votes cast in this year’s annual online contest. Voting in the contest, which ends Tuesday at midnight, costs $1 per ballot, as the contest is a fundraiser for the BC SPCA. See

“Wildlife-in-Focus builds community by appreciating and living in co-existence with the wildlife around us, and supporting our local wildlife photographers to lead the way in ethical wildlife photography,” BC SPCA representative Nadia Xenakis said. 

Winning entries will be announced soon with the calendar available for purchase online at later this year.