Sharon says Ted is mending fine. She said the abscess has shrunk greatly and that he is walking and eating as usual. 
Blue jayHere is a video of Ted getting his breakfast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4fP9ZVf5z8. We love Ted.
People were asking, “Who is Dick?” He is a handsome but shy non-clan bear that has been visiting for years. We don’t know a lot about him.
Overnight, 2-3 inches of snow fell, giving a whole different look to the colorful forest. Then leaves began falling on top of the snow—red maple leaves, quaking aspen leaves, and big-toothed aspen leaves were the most noticeable. One tree shed most of its leaves while many others kept most of theirs. Red maple leaves, that may be yellow or red, are among the first to fall, but we expect most leaves to be down within two weeks.
Rusty blackbirds were striding through the snow. Red squirrels tunnelled and plowed through it. A yellow-rumped warbler sat on a branch above it all with its feathers puffed out for warmth. Birds were looking for any open areas to find food, like on the driveway.
 Maple leaves |
 Blue jay |
 Quaking Aspen leaves |
 Dark-eyed junco bathing |
 Blue jay |
 Yellow-rumped warbler |
 Red squirrel |
 Rusty blackbird |
I was surprised to see a dark-eyed junco bathing in a puddle just off the edge of the ice. The temperature was about 32°F at the time.
I don’t know if it was intentional or not, but blue jays seemed to show off whenever the sun peaked through the clouds and made their colors especially brilliant. Could it be coincidence that one showed me its nice blue back at that moment and looked to see if I noticed. Another cocked its head and looked at me with its crest unusually prominent. Another raised its pretty tail in an unusual manner. I have never thought of blue jays as conceited. They are all just born beautiful. I’m going to chalk it all up to the strong north wind blowing their crests and tails like that.
Thank you for all you do.
Lynn Rogers, Biologist, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center