Holly near her "project"Today we got a few pictures of Holly in the area where she has been digging under a very large upturned tree trunk. Bears in the wild choose a variety of places for a den. They may pick a rock den, a large brush pile, or a fallen tree that creates a divot when the tree falls, just to name a few. For those of you wondering the location of this overturned tree trunk, these three pictures may be helpful. The trunk is not inside one of the pens for the bears but actually right next to the fence of the "cabin" enclosure. That particular enclosure is about 40 feet from the two bunker dens of Holly and Lucky.
HollyIn all three pictures taken just moments apart, Holly is sitting in the same place and she is about 10 feet from the large tree trunk where she has been digging.
HollyThe staff has already been asked does this mean that Holly and Lucky will not den together? We don't know, we will have to wait and see. Keep in mind that Holly arrived on Dec. 27, 2013 so we do not know what she did last year.
Honey has been on the move during breakfast time the last few days. The picture today is of Honey coming back from a walk up towards the "haven" after the other bears were given breakfast. Ted is no longer interested in coming out of his enclosure.
Honey taking a walkOn another topic the work team is making progress on the Northwoods Ecology Exhibit Hall habitat and landscape. The picture shows Randy's work team, Robin and Tom.They have all done a great job working everyday since they arrived. But, we are far from done. We have trees, shrubs, and grasses to add along with taxidermy, plus a small pond.
Exhibit progressIn the next week or so we will be rock collecting outside the Northwoods Ecology Exhibit Hall. Back in the fall of 2012 when Kraus- Anderson started to dig for the footings of the new building they had to blast some rock out of the way. Some of that same rock will help us build the pond area in the habitat. Some how that seems like a fitting place for the rock that was blasted out of the ground just below the Northwoods Ecology Hall and Hope Learning Center.
As progress is made during the fall and winter months we will update you.
Thank you for your support.
Judy Thon, Director of Education, North American Bear Center
All photos taken today unless otherwise noted.