Jewel and cubs forage within sight of the den shed that transmitted their den cam! - May 12, 2012June and her yearling Aster were as close as ever today. They foraged little as they covered ground, stopping occasionally to flip rocks to look for ant pupae but finding none yet. We held up a garter snake for June to sniff and she turned her head quickly away as if repulsed. Aster had less of a reaction but it was obvious neither of them had any interest in it.
Herbie explores the hole Jewel dug ants out of - May 12, 2012Jewel, Herbie, and Fern spent most of today within 150 yards of their den foraging on a multitude of greens. Jewel did the serious foraging—eating horsetail (Equisetum spp.), large-leaf aster (Eurybia macrophylla), hawkweed (Hieracium spp.) leaves, sedge seed heads, several different types of grass, wild calla (Calla palustris), aspen leaves (Populus tremuloides), and ants. A new food to us was the sedge seed heads, and this was the first time we have seen a bear frantically tear into a snag after ants rather than ant pupae. Jewel was definitely licking up the ants. The cubs were very active following their noses and trying many of the new foods. It was interesting to see their early attempts at eating solid food when they are just getting the teeth needed to bite off the stems.
Today, Sue videoed in the BBC’s format and some of the footage will likely appear in tomorrow’s Planet Earth Live program. They have promised to return the footage to us in a format we can use.
Thank you for all you do.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center