Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Bears Grazing? in the Meadow

July 17-20th - We spent a lot of time watching the bears in the meadow. I never knew that bears would graze on grass.
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They looked a bit like big, stocky bison-like animals when they had their head down, grazing.
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They chomped….and chomped…..We noted at least 6 different bears as we watched, and began to tell them apart.
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This is a momma Grizzly…..she was the most magnificent looking bear……
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And her totally cute and fuzzy cub…..
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This bear we called ‘No Pants’……she was in the middle of shedding her winter fur.
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‘No Pants’ on the left, always looked grumpy. In contrast, the bear on the right, seemed downright happy.
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Who could resist this smile?…..
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Bear watching was a quiet activity. The bears would amble around…..
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Coming remarkably close to us. We had several bears pass within 10 yards of where we were.
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Sometimes I could get a nice face shot…..
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But, much of the time the bears would turn their backside to us….in a kind of “I don’t care about you” attitude.
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We were able to watch the bears just sit and relax. The object behind this bear is not a toy ball, but a buoy that had floated in during a storm.
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This bear is scratching an itch. As they shed their winter fur coat, it itches……
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And speaking of itches……The mosquitoes bothered the bears as much as they bother us.
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The weather was a nice sunny 55-60 degrees…..hot for a bear. After grazing through the meadow, the bears would wander  over for a drink…..sometimes lying in the water to cool off.
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This one curled up on the creek bank to take a nap.

We watched this bear when it woke up, it spotted the other female bear, the one that it had skirmished with on the tidal flats. These two were definitely engaged in a battle for dominance, and it is easy to tell which bear came out behind on this exchange.
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Other bears would occasionally just sit and enjoy the view right along with us.
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Ahhh…..Life is good!
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2 comments:

  1. I can't believe you were so close to these grizzlies! Great photos! Joann

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  2. I am thoroughly enjoying your grizzly watching series. I must've met my heart skipped a couple beats when you said the grizzlies wandered within 10 yards! I would've been tempted to get up and run away!

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