Today was all about passing an Ely City Council Resolution in support of protection for the radio-collared bears. To learn what kind of support there is in Ely for protection, Donna Rogers and Lynn asked for signatures of support from 70 business owners. That’s nearly all the businesses in the city limits. 68 signed. Lily fans seemed to be the deciding factor. Many of them were Lily fans themselves. Other business owners saw what you are doing for the Ely area. For example, Betty Firth, manager of the Ely Area Food Shelf, attended the City Council meeting in support. Your actions also have greatly impressed the City Council members. When they saw the overwhelming support from Ely businesses and heard your accomplishments for the Ely area recounted, it was evident they wanted protection. A hunter in the audience spoke briefly in support. The Ely City Council voted unanimously in support of the following resolution:Ely City Council Resolution
A resolution in support of protection for radio-collared bears
Whereas, it is in the public interest to protect radio-collared bears that are uniquely valuable to science, education, bear management, and the region;
Whereas, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Minnesota Bear Guides Association, Ely bear researchers, the media, and others have asked hunters not to shoot radio-collared bears for 10 years;
Whereas, the study has been recognized as one of the world’s top 4 studies of large mammals;
Whereas, all of these 8-16 radio-collared bears are part of a single clan that has been studied for generations;
Whereas, the hours required to gain the trust of these bears for research makes many of them irreplaceable in the researchers’ lifetimes;
Whereas, many hunters have asked that it be illegal to shoot radio-collared bears in fairness to hunters who voluntarily spare them for their many values;
Whereas, these bears are easily recognized by durable, long, colorful ribbons attached to their radio-collars during bear hunting season;
Whereas, information and video from these bears makes the North American Bear Center what it is;
Whereas, hunters have shot six of them since 2005, including 2 in 2010;
Therefore, be it resolved that the Ely City Council supports legal protection for radio-collared bears wearing bright-colored ribbons in central St Louis County east of Highway 53 in Townships 60-64N and asks hunter cooperation in sparing these bears elsewhere in Minnesota.
Thank you all so much for making this possible. Lily’s fans are making things possible that we never dreamed.
Adding to the delight of this good day was the sandwich materials you sent for lunch yesterday, including the Polar Bear Kisses. The thinly sliced roast beef was particularly good, or maybe it just seemed that way because Lynn was extra hungry when he ate slice after slice.
The next step for the Ely City Council Resolution is to show it to decision-makers like Governor-elect Mark Dayton, the existing DNR Commissioner, the new DNR Commissioner after January 20, our legislators Rep. David Dill and Sen. Tom Bakk, and others. It should help to show that Lily’s home town is in support of legal protection. We’re not sure how to reach the Governor-elect at this point.
Jason was hampered by the deep snow today and had to quit because of darkness. Snow depth was officially 22 inches by the end of November and more has fallen this past week.
Good news from the Den Cam Team today. Verizon is waiving its bandwidth fees, saving us thousands of dollars. The next question is signal strength. The top engineer on that is optimistic that we’ll have a decent signal, comparable to last year’s. We’re planning two cameras—one outside and one inside Lily and Hope’s den. We’re only a week and a half from installation.
This morning, Sue left for a week of family time in New Hampshire. She’ll be back in time to help with the installation. Linda Gibson will post this to Facebook post haste, and Sue will post it to bear.org and bearstudy.org after her plane lands later tonight.
The address for the Ely Area Food Shelf is PO Box 786, Ely, MN 55731.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center