It was hard to stop watching. The interactions between Lucky and Holly were intriguing. Lucky went to Holly. I tossed a couple peanuts between them. Lucky started for one but Holly was quicker and took it from under his nose. She sat in a relaxed position leaning back with Lucky sitting 2-3 feet away facing her. She was totally relaxed. A few minutes later, Lucky jumped at her quickly and chased her off through the woods. Wow, what did that mean? We listened for sounds of stress or pain. Nothing. Lucky reappeared. Holly came walking toward us from another direction, walking on a downed tree maybe 5 feet above the ground. Lucky started toward her on the log. She came forward and calmly met him face to face. She wanted to be with him. We couldn’t see whether she is still in estrus or not, but it was evident they wanted to be together. At different times, both of them were initiating contact. They are a couple, but somehow she doesn’t seem ready to mate. It was a wonderful hour. The woods was beautiful around them.
Thank you for all you do.
Lynn Rogers, Biologist, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center