VictorWith the Black Bear Field Courses full and ready to start in 8 days, the bears that have been off mating figured it was time to show up.
A major joy was seeing 10-year-old Burt last evening. He looked like he’d put a major effort into mating, being as skinny as he was. I hadn’t seen him for some 10 months (and had worried about him) but we were at once comfortable together. It is the same comfort level I have with his littermate Ursula once she recognizes me, although that is difficult to achieve out in the woods where she is very wary and hard to approach. I think the comfort with both stems from April 3, 2005 when I was able to spend time with them as cubs at their den. Ursula was still in her socialization period, a 6-week period when bears are open to forming social relationships. Burt was transitioning past that period and was defensive at first but was not so far beyond it that he could not soften, which he did. The trust remains to this day , which makes hunting seasons harder. It was only a mile from Ursula’s territory that a bear hunter offered another money if he shot a radio-collared bear, as is shown in the documentary “Lily, a bear’s life.”
Today, Victor showed up. I haven’t been worried about him because he showed up at another community feeding station. He doesn’t have the background with me that Burt does, so he’s initially shy until we fall into a familiar routine.
Burt - June 26, 2015Today he was favoring the inside half of his left front paw—most likely from a competing male during mating season, or maybe he stepped on something. Victor is not a bear that would readily let me examine a paw.
Victor once was the bear with the most beautiful face, but then he matured and sacrificed that for mating success and a face with character.
While researching an exhibit for the Ecology Hall, I came across a U.S. Forest Service educational video “Leave No Trace” with a scene that shows Gerry being chased away from a campsite 24 years ago. I was working for the US Forest Service at the time and wanted to include a scene to show people that black bears are not the ferocious animals many believe. I was glad to see Gerry still giving that message today exactly 8 minutes into this popular USFS video that has been shown to hundreds of thousands of BWCAW visitors over the years. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AgzLn4R4fn4#t=522
I couldn’t help thinking how strongly this video contradicts recent DNR statements about the danger of fed bears who have become comfortable with people. The truth is that the bear being run off in this video had no fear of people who acted normal. She had been raised in captivity through her socialization period and generally preferred humans over bears. Under DNR direction, we had accepted her as an orphan from Michigan and fostered her to the wild mother (Terri) that raised her. Still, when confronted by screaming “campers,” she ran like any other black bear.
At the Bear Center, Ted was intrigued with a box with food and holes in it. The Bear Center seems extra vibrant with the volunteer Bear Educators and 4 interns who are working with visitors and enabling activities that would be impossible without them. The interns receive a thousand dollars each for the summer, much of it donated by a Lily Fan.
Thank you for all you do.
Lynn Rogers, Biologist, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
All photos taken today unless otherwise noted.