Ted relaxes in the chalet den - Nov 7, 2012
Lucky rakes more straw into his den - Nov 7, 2012Today, Ted became full owner of the chalet den and looked content as he relaxed in the entrance. Honey will get the big cement bunker she chose last year when Lucky was already in it. That’s the den they shared in view of the Bear Center Den Cam last winter. Lucky has the smaller bunker next to Honey’s and was busy raking more straw into it today.
We are getting the bears settled into these dens and holding pens so they have secure surroundings when blasting occurs tomorrow. The construction crew ran into bedrock while digging the foundation for the new addition. Fortunately, excavator John Wavrin has a drill rig and blasting mats to quickly prepare for blasting. That means minimum delay as winter approaches. He already has the equipment in place to blast tomorrow so the crew can move ahead. The photos show a dug area, the drill in place, and the tire blanket for shielding the blast.
Drilling rig - Nov 7, 2012
Blasting mats - Nov 7, 2012We plan to videotape the bears’ reactions to the blasts. Will their reactions be minimal like their reactions to thunder (that they’ve heard all their lives) and gunshots that sound like thunder? Or will the blasts shake the ground and provoke a bigger reaction? We hope not, but we want to know.
Today, a scat near the chalet had a huge roundworm in it. It’s probably the same common Baylisascaris transfuga roundworm that wild bears pass this time of year as they slow down for hibernation. In 2007, June produced a scat containing 9 of them. They are common, thought to be harmless, and are adapted to the annual cycle of bear activity and hibernation. We don’t know how Ted or Honey could have contracted them.
Roundworm from scat - Nov 7, 2012On another note, for fun, the Bear Center staff, together with Lily Fans created a Halloween night of terror for town folk and their kids to enjoy last month (Oct 19-20). We don’t know who had more fun—the creators or the kids. Each year, this event becomes better than the year before. Check out the fun at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OtX5ArlGWw.
We are fortunate to have such a creative and fun-loving group (staff and volunteers) and are anxious to turn them loose educating about bears in non-terrorizing ways through the Hope Learning Center.
Lynn thanks everyone for the encouraging messages as his toe and arm slowly heal.
Thank you for all you do.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center