Short-tailed Weasel at NWEHIn this 7-minute highlight video of Juliet a year ago, the temperature starts out at 23 below zero F. At 3:48 AM, Juliet rouses and carefully moves to use her muzzle to nudge a cub back underneath her. She is evidently aware of each cub’s location under her and avoids sitting on them as she skooches over a few inches at a time. The cubs protest the cold while she is upright letting the cold in. The video ends in the afternoon with temperatures up around 7 above zero and the cubs nursing contentedly.
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TydeI9gTiVc
Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/118863430
Archives: http://www.bearstudy.org/website/research/2014-juliet-archives.html
In this 9-minute interview with Judy Thon, Peter Johnson answered Lily Fans’ questions about how he and Ryan make rocks, snow, icicles and more. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qn1n04rukQs
Gray Fox at Ecology HallToday, Peter sent a couple shots of their work, showing a young short-tailed weasel in place. The photo that includes the gray fox shows the boundary between summer and fall. In the foreground by the fox, blueberry bushes have berries. Toward the right, the blueberry leaves are orange. By late fall, short-tailed weasels (also called ermines) are white like this one.
Peter says today that things will move quickly now as they wind things up. Light expert Doug Hajicek will try to drive up from Minneapolis tomorrow to advise on lighting. He and Peter tossed ideas around on the phone today and seemed to be in agreement. Things are coming together on this part of the Ecology Hall. Peter and Ryan will next put the snow in place for the late fall and winter section and add animals and details. At the end, they will place delicate dried butterflies a Lily Fan sent. One thing that makes Peter and Ryan so good is that they have spent a lot of time in the northwoods and know what is natural down to details like what kinds of trees to put shelf fungi on.
Thank you for all you do.
Lynn Rogers, Biologist, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
All photos taken today unless otherwise noted.