Bear and Wildlife Viewing Update for Wed, July 21

Michael Allen, Bear Researcher/Senior Guide 698-6709

MID-SUMMER BEAR ACTIVITY IS HIGH!

6am and 6pm tours are seeing 7-17 bears!!

Bear Activity Synopsis:

With the late May-late July breeding season winding down bears are shifting to opportunistic insect foraging (while still grazing). Bears tear apart tree stumps and rotten logs and flip over rocks in search of concentrated carpenter ants and larva. Ants give off a scent so bears can detect their presence by sniffing along logs/stumps and debris piles. Subterranean beehives/nests can also be found giving the bear a rich reward of carbs and proteins by consuming larva, honeycomb, and the bees themselves. The bears tough dual layer coat prevents serious stings to their body but, bears do feel stings to the face and mouth...still, the reward is too great. With 6 mothers in accompany of 11 cubs total, bear families are the most frequently seen bears on trips. Cubs are 6 months old now and weigh around 25-30 lbs. All cubs are still accounted for but, resident mom Elly was separated from her daughter for only 2 days only to re-unite with a limping cub. Cubs are tough and moms are good nurses so we'll keep an eye on the cub's progress. It's common for cubs to sustain bumps and bruises while crazily climbing up and down trees all day. While male bears are beginning to disperse for post-breeding foraging, they still are a considerable threat to cubs. Young, contending males that are not fathers (because they lack status) pose the greatest risk to bear families because dads do not kill their own offspring. I did see a handsome, black face adult male last week that I had not seen in the ski area this year. If the warm, sunny weather continues, bears should have berries at mid-mountain elevations by mid-August.     

Trip Highlights:

Jeanie ripping apart a 2-meter deep log pile to feed on a buried beehive

Beautiful blonde Brownie and 2 wrestling black cubs

Large male Skinner did 14 somersaults on a snowpatch to entice play with small female at 6000ft.

Alpha male Slumber grazing his secluded valley amongst snowpatches

Late evening bears in the orange glow of the setting sun

First Columbian Black-tailed deer fawns on Whistler Mountain

Short walk to winter bear den

PLEASE REMIND GUESTS TO WEAR A COOL LONG-SLEEVE LAYER FOR BUGS AND PROPER FOOTWEAR...NO FLIP-FLOPS!

4-year old maturing female launches her defense against the playful

large male Skinner at a cool subalpine snowpatch on Blackcomb Mountain

(M. Allen 7/2010).