Regal LuckyHolly and Lucky are not an item yet. They pretty much ignored each other when they were out today. Lucky walked from his den to the gate, got his head of lettuce and took it back into his den. He later came out to eat pieces of apple the staff threw to him. He looked in Holly’s direction but did not approach the fence that separates them. Holly looked briefly at Lucky but concentrated on the lettuce and nuts the staff gave her. She ignored pieces of apple.
Lucky watches Holly climbHer blasé attitude toward Lucky was an improvement over Sunday night. The staff had noticed a space next to Holly’s gate that she could possibly squeeze through after losing weight overwinter. They worked on it by lantern. Holly tried to help. She is more confident behind a fence than face to face. The lantern lighted Lucky just inside his den. Holly blew repeatedly at him. Nervous. Meeting Lucky through the 4-inch hole between their dens had not prepared Holly for seeing the big bear himself.
Holly climbs in her enclosureThe staff threw grapes that Holly ignored, but she eventually did take 5 from Sharon’s hand through the fence. Holly is becoming comfortable with staff members but remains wary of strangers.
Majestic TedTed’ first excursion out of his den was a walk to the fence for a head of romaine lettuce and 2 carrots today.
Honey explored under the viewing deck and headed off to some secret spot in the woods. The staff shoveled snow off the scale, hoping to get a weight on Honey soon.
HollyTomorrow, our veterinarian is coming to examine Holly. We have resigned ourselves to the fact that she will need to be tranquilized to remove her ear tags and draw blood for a thorough exam. We like to avoid tranquilizers whenever we can, but sometimes it’s best for the bear.
Holly's front pawOnly one item, the Woodland Caribou, remains on the Taxidermy List. Thank you! We hope to have a list of available birds soon. We’d like to exhibit each of the 155 birds that nest in the Ely area, but it will take time to accumulate them for mounting. Again, for each item sponsored, we will post an engraved plaque saying “Donated by …or ”In memory of …”
Lucky back in his denWe’d also like to see Lily Fans help in another way. We’re envisioning volunteers putting their marks on this educational exhibit by summarizing the life history information for each species, giving sources for each bit of information. We’re thinking of an information station where visitors can sit down and peruse scrapbooks or a published book that includes every species exhibited. More on that coming up.
Thank you for all you do.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center