The world’s favorite bears will be back online in about 30 minutes, at noon EDT (6/16/2023). Probably will not be too much action at the falls themselves for at least a week. Might have a better chance of seeing bears at the downstream cameras.
The salmon run has not started yet, so bear sightings will be sporadic for a while.
The rangers have reported that 128 Grazer and her still NOT emancipated sub-adults (not cubs at this point) have been scene wandering around the area. Extremely rare for cubs to not be emancipated by their fourth summer. I suspect she will emancipate them shortly, as she will have to drive them away if she goes into estrus.
That those cubs are back at the river at the same time as their mother does not mean that they are not Emancipated. Bears, who are essentially loners except for sows with cubs, all come together at the rapids on salmon streams because the fish congregate in one spot before making it upstream past the rapids. The cubs were taught by their mother to be there when the fish are.
While that is true as a general rule, in this case, the rangers observed them keeping company with 128 over a couple days, which indicates they were not emancipated.
However, she did come into estrus and drove them off within the past 5 days. At least two males have been observed in pursuit of 128, bears 909 and 747.
So, all in all, she kept them to 3 1/2 years of age, which is unusual, but not unheard of. It does give them a leg up on their peers that were emancipated a year earlier.
Another case of pure recklessness, just like the Titanic sub and Apollo 1.
Or like this.
First of all, the title is misleading. The tiger may simply have been instinctively reacting to the other cat’s charge. Animals are generally not capable of noble thoughts or actions, with the possible exception of certain cetaceans.
You don’t turn your back to a cat. And you never turn your back to numerous cats. That man was being a reckless idiot and is alive only through dumb luck.
Visitors to Katmai must undergo a mandatory 20 minute orientation when they arrive and must adhere to very strict rules while on site. There have been minor incidents, but excellent bear management at the Brooks Falls has maintained an excellent safety record over the years.
By the way, Treadwell was killed by a Brown Bear, not a Grizzly Bear. While all Grizzly Bears are Brown Bears, not all Brown Bears are Grizzly Bears. The bears in Katmai and nearby are more correctly referred to as Brown Bears, as they live near the coast, feed on seafood predominantly and are larger. Grizzly Bears generally live farther inland, feed on mammalian prey animals or carrion and are smaller.
Genetically, Grizzlies and Browns are the same species. The only difference between them is location and diet, and accordingly there are some behavioral differences too. The coastal bears are generally larger because they have better (nutritionally), more consistent food sources. But a Grizzly that finds its way to the coast (and they do) is indistinguishable from the indigenous inhabitants and is fully capable of breeding with them.
Interestingly, even Polar Bears, which are considered to be their own species, are closely related to Alaska Brown Bears. Scientists have traced, through DNA, their origin to Brown Bears currently living in the norther half of SE Alaska between 70-100,000 years ago. In fact, they determined that those particular Brown Bears are more closely related to Polar Bears than they are to other populations of Brown Bears, even those in other parts of Alaska.
I’ve heard of similar theories before where a random mutation caused a single female to have no color in her hair, passing it on to half her progeny, and so on and so forth. The advantage being the white bears blended in more with the ice age environment, ensuring they were the strongest and most likely to mate.
128 “Grazer” on the left versus 435 “Holly”. Perhaps the two most contrasting sows at Katmai. Grazer is 100% bitch and is many bears at Katmai have been on the receiving end of a Grazer bite. Even large boars give way to her. Holly, on the other hand, is 100% sweetheart, tending to avoid trouble.
Holly is the 2019 Fat Bear Week Champion. Her performance from 2019 was nothing short of epic.
Chunk and Grazer won their respective contests handily and will face off for Fat Bear Champion, the vote being held today.
Boar v Sow. Grazer emancipated her two sub adults (not really cubs at that point) shortly after arriving at Katmai in early-June and thus was able to focus all her attention on fattening herself and not cubs.
