Water lilies - Aug 5, 2012It’s hard to lose a bear—especially a bear we’ve collared. We were still working to figure out who Noliana was when her life ended. As we reflect on our brief time with her, some things stand out. She was very comfortable with people—even to the point of following them—and she attempted to engage people in play.
The more we think about it, the more we think Noliana was raised by people and released into this area.
We first saw Noliana on July 7 when a nearby homeowner called about an injured bear. When Lynn went to check on her, he found she accepted his touch so he assumed she was a bear we knew. He thought she was Braveheart’s daughter Oliana. She was not. The real Oliana showed up later.
We collared Noliana on July 11 so we could treat her with antibiotics to stem the infection in her leg wound. We wanted to make sure we could find her each day to ensure she received a full round of treatment. Sue said that Noliana was the easiest bear to radio-collar she has ever met, and we didn’t even know her.
The first time Sue had to radio-track her, little Noliana was up a tree escaping from Lily. When Lily left, Noliana came down, took her medicine, then sat by Sue and tried to engage her in play. The wild bears we work with never spend time with us like that. They have things to do and no desire for our company. When the food we give them to hold them in place while we change GPS batteries is gone, they’re off. They don’t even bother to look back.
Noliana’s desire to play with people was unusual. The wild bears we work with have never done that with the exception of Hope. After being fed, Hope often tried to play with us, which we discouraged. Without the stimulation of a bear family, Hope turned to those who provided her with food to fill her need for physical contact. After Hope reunited with her mother Lily, she no longer attempted to play with us.
Also, Noliana twice followed whoever gave her the medicine—something we never see from the wild bears with the exception of Hope. To thwart Hope’s penchant for following us, we took to staying with her until the formula was gone (so we could retrieve the container), then giving her the nuts, mealworms, and berries and leaving while she ate them. After Hope reunited with Lily, she no longer followed us.
Water lily - Aug 5, 2012The only explanation that fits the sudden appearance of Noliana, who was more comfortable with humans than any wild bear we've worked with, is that she was raised by someone as a cub and released into the wild.
We hope the necropsy the DNR performed on her will shed some light on the source of her leg wound. Was she really the bear hit by a car 9 miles away? If she were released into a strange area, it is likely she would have traveled a bit before finding a place to settle. The feeding stations around here made this a good place for her. She mostly stayed within 0.2 miles of where we first saw her. She never came to the Research Center. We hope to learn more about Noliana's origins from the hair sample we collected for DNA when we collared her.
In times of stress like this, Lynn sometimes gets grounded by spending a few hours soaking in the beauty of nature. The water lily is from his time alone this morning.
Thank you for all you do.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center