Cubs are active! Another change we’re seeing is the cubs resting outside the warmth of Lily’s fur more often. Although the cubs were snuggled warm and secure under Lily at 5 AM with the temperature at minus 2F, we saw a cub resting contently outside Lily’s fur at 20F in the video of Lily’s big startled move. Today, at 32F, the cubs explored. Northern cubs have highly insulative fur with fine hairs tightly packed—almost like the dense short underfur of adults. We don’t know if black bear cubs differ in the south.
Lily's old cracked footpadsThe cubs will shed their warm cub fur in early summer and grow adult-type fur. Long coarse hairs we call “guard hairs” appear first. For most of the summer, the guard hairs lay close to the body, making the bears look sleek and lean. In late summer and fall, a second type of hair gets them ready for winter—fine, wavy, shorter underfur. As this layer grows in, the guard hairs, which have been lengthening all summer, get propped up so they point straight out (3 to 4 ½ inches), making bears look fat and fluffy, even if they are lean. The next year, both layers are shed and new fur grows, first the guard hairs and then the underfur again.
Furry cubDo black bears raise their hackles (the fur on the neck and back) when they are upset? We don’t know of any bears do that—certainly not black bears. Where does that idea come from? The last hairs to be shed in summer are the long guard hairs down the spine. A bear can have new short fur everywhere on its body except down the spine. It looks like a dog with its hackles up. Another thing that can look like hackles is when all the hairs stand up in fall when the underfur grows in. If a person is looking for raised hackles in fall, a brief look at the hairs standing straight up on the back and neck could confuse someone.
Jewel chews yearling's footpadJewel gave us some close-up views today as she licked something from the Den Cam tube—perhaps icicles. Her licks to the lens actually improved the picture. There had been dust on the lens, and her watery tongue was just what was needed.
Herbie up close and personalAt the Bear Center, Judy Thon realigned Ted’s Den Cam and got a sweet greeting from Ted who she has known for 2 years now. He gave his sweet grunts but didn’t get up. He has been out of his den 4 times this year (since January 1), all because of people or the straw they spread. Lucky and Honey have not budged out of their dens at all this year.
Biting twig or...hmmmWe were happy to hear that the Den Cams were featured this morning from 5 to 7 AM by KSFY TV in Sioux Falls, SD, as part of National Wildlife Week. If any other TV stations might consider featuring the Den Cams for National Wildlife Week, here’s what we think makes this special.
Lily's familyThe show in Lily’s wild den right now is unprecedented, thanks to new high def technology and our forward-thinking Tech Team—and of course the bears. Developing cubs are beginning to play, learning to walk, and receiving tender loving care from their 6-year-old mother all in front of the camera 24/7—available free both live and in archive form.
Lily's cubsViewers see mother Lily reacting to perceived danger outside the den with ferocious looking displays, followed by loving reassurances to her cubs as she nurses them. The cubs compete with each other, bawling for access to nipples, and then nurse with a pulsing hum that tells mom not to move because all is well. Viewers are learning directly from the bears about the half of black bear life that has remained mostly a mystery until now.
Lily and cubPrevious information could only be obtained by looking into dens, which inhibited most activities. Now, with a remote camera, people around the world are watching undisturbed male and female cubs grow up before their eyes after seeing them born on January 12, 2013. The opportunity to watch is brief. It will be over in less than a month when the cubs follow their mother out of the den in early to mid April.
Lily and cubUntil then, every day brings changes in the cubs’ appearance and behavior and in family relations. The cubs cannot be cuter than right now with their eyes fully opened and struggling to gain the coordination that will let them follow mom and climb trees.
LilyPeople used to believe that cubs were born while their mothers slept. The web cams have turned belief after belief on its head as they revealed how constantly and gently mothers care for their cubs, bathing them with her tongue, and responding to their cries. They make it hard to turn away. Other work stops when there is activity in the den.
After taking a break from videos yesterday, our video editor worked doubly hard to catch up. She insisted on creating videos for yesterday and today! Boy, do we have videos for you!
Cub climbs up to the den bedMarch 21On the naming contest, Lily Fans are speaking out. With just one day to go, we may go over 6,000 votes at http://www.bear.org/website/cub-naming.html.
Thank you for all you do.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
All photos taken today unless otherwise noted.