Any year that begins with 1-1-11 has to signify an important new beginning. For us, we think it signifies the beginning of learning and sharing more than ever before—and maybe protection for radio-collared bears.
The year started off with a bang with Linda Gibson posting a video of Hope suckling in the last few minutes of 2010. It starts with Lily outside the den eating snow (loud) near the microphone. Inside the den, Hope’s eyes shine bright in the invisible infra-red lights. Lily comes in. Hope soon bawls for access to Lily’s nipples. Shortly, we hear the pulsing hum of suckling with Lily sitting in a familiar position for that. Linda captured more video of that at 3:20 PM and 5:20 PM today. The New Year’s Eve suckling video can be seen at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRpCsA3yB04.
Does Lily have milk? Probably little or none. She had only a few drops back in fall before entering the den.
Milk or not, cubs have a drive to suckle. Orphans often suckle on each others’ ears. Cubs raised by people suckle on the keeper’s fingers and especially his or her earlobes. Efforts to deter them can provoke an angry bite. In spring, well-fed females resume milk production for their yearlings, but leaner mothers don’t. Back in spring 1990, Terri stopped foraging periodically to let her yearlings Gerry and Mary suckle even though she had no milk.
We’ll check Lily’s nipples next time she comes out of the den to see us. On the other hand, we hate to visit the den unless it is absolutely necessary. The greatest beauty of the Den Cam is that most of what we see is without disturbing the bears. No one has been able to learn from wild bears like this before.
But what will happen when (if) a new litter is born? Hope’s desire to suckle makes us worry that Hope will compete with the new cubs. If Lily sits up like she did today, the new cubs would likely squawk about the cold. Would Lily then warm the cubs or give in to Hope’s bawling to nurse? Mixed age litters have survived to emerge from dens before. We can only wait and see what Lily will do.
The weak, crackly sound is disappointing but might be the best possible given the remoteness of the den and our reliance on 12V batteries for power. We’re not sure an amplifier will fix it or just amplify the static along with the sound.
Here is an article by Gordon Buchanan about his experiences with Lily and Hope. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1343111/Love-bite-For-second-I-thought-huge-bear-kissed-me.html?ito=feeds-newsxml . We are told the three programs “The Bear Family and Me (Gordon Buchanan)” will air on January 3, 4, and 5 on BBC2 in the UK. The article says it will air tomorrow night, which is confusing. The article has a lot of pictures of Gordon, Lily, and Hope.
Thank you again for your generosity to the Bear Center to end 2010 with a surge. In the last 24 hours, you brought the debt down far more than we thought possible. After starting the year $700,000 in debt, the stroke of midnight showed the debt at only $122,226. Your generosity is amazing.
If you are interested in becoming part of the den watch team that records detailed data on den activity please send an email to
Thank you for all you do.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center