Lily and Hope - The Black Bear and Cub

Thanks Anne-Marie and WS for posting the fantastic news and the video clip.

What a few days we've had - i can't believe what happened, and the fact that we have a happy ending is just amazing. I wonder why Lily did that and if we will ever know.

Fingers crossed they stick together now.

Thanks again for keeping us updated Anne-Marie.

Lai

I really didn't think we'd have a happy ending, not after 5 days. But how fantastic that for once, we did!! I'm just over the moon!!!

It sounds like Hope was giving Lily a proper telling off for leaving her for so long. So glad to hear that little hummming noise again!! Beautiful, beautiful!! You could hear Sue (I think it is) crying in the background! They have worked so so hard to find Hope and re-unite them! Bet they have had a few sleepless nights!!!

Let's also hope your day at work gets better Doogs - poor you

Lai

Anne-Marie at long last ive gotten to see your update, I saw it early this morning before I went to work but didn't have time to read it. Like Doogs i've had a Duff day at work and have been dying to get home to see the post and read it properly and now i'm over the moon, just amazing to see them together again and what a relief it is. Lily had better not do that to Hope, the team or us again, it's been quite a few days hasn't it, but at least at long last we have a very happy ending, I am delighted.
Thank you so much for posting all the updates Anne-Marie and it sounds as if there is more to come and Thank you WS for embedding the video, it was just so lovely to watch them together again. Thank you both so much.

littlewid-x-

Update on Lily and Hope in case Anne-Marie doesnt get to post this

Still Glowing

All is well. We feel very good about all that happened yesterday. There are those who say we should not have intervened. But we think we answered bigger scientific questions by getting the facts. One question was whether the cub was sick and if Lily intentionally abandoned it because she knew something we didn’t. By catching the cub we could see it was a very vigorous cub even after 5 days. And after witnessing Lily’s wholehearted acceptance of Hope it’s difficult to believe she meant to abandon her. It also shows wildlife managers that cubs that have been away from their mother for 5 days can be returned. Some suggest that mother’s will abandon single cubs so they can mate and produce 3 cubs the next winter. While that might sound good by the numbers it didn’t sound good to Lily. It also showed that mothers whose breasts have turned hard and lumpy can still nurse.

What led to the reunion?



Hope after 5 days on her own - May 26, 2010In part, it was persistence by a caring community. While we were searching the area where Hope was last seen, community members were searching more widely. The decision Mike and Ellen Kochevar made to search ‘one more time’ before they left town for a few days proved fateful. They spotted Hope on the side of the road in the area Lily and Hope had been just before moving around the lake—a full 2 miles away from where she had been seen on Tuesday! She ran when she saw them, but they were able to tree her and give us a call. We geared up and hurried to the scene. Two more calls came as we were on the way. “She’s coming down. What do we do?” “Do whatever it takes to keep her up there!” was the answer. “She’s weak and I don’t think she can hold onto the tree much longer!” “If she comes down, grab her by the scruff and don’t let go. We’re almost there!”

At first, it seemed unbelievable that this 4-month old cub could navigate the 2 miles back ‘home’ in her nutritionally stressed state. But as soon as we saw that unmistakable light face we knew it was Hope. She looked exhausted and we thought maybe she was weakened from hunger. Sue dipped a 5-foot long stick into sweetened condensed milk and extended it to the cub. Hope licked it and grabbed it with a paw. We lured her down within reach.

When Lynn grabbed her she dispelled all notions that she was weak or sick! Spunky Hope fought like a demon—screaming at the top of her lungs. She bloodied both of us as we worked to get into the pet carrier. Inside the carrier she didn’t let up. She was a scared slapping spitfire!

We emptied an entire bottle of electrolyte supplement into the carrier and Hope interrupted her defensive displays to lap it up. We gave her spoonfuls of sweetened condensed milk, which she eagerly licked. We finally slipped the entire dish into the carrier. She quieted down but was quick to slap and blow in her nervousness.

We put the pet carrier in the van and drove to radio-locate Lily a mile away. We found Lily about 0.1 miles off a road. We wondered if Hope’s cries would bring Lily to the rescue. Instead, Lily fled a half mile away! We tracked her down to the area where they had bedded at a white pine for a couple weeks after leaving their den. Lily wasn’t coming out to us so we decided to take Hope in to Lily. This is when our roller-coaster of emotion took a down-turn. Just as we were entering the forest, Hope’s frantic attempts to find a way out of the carrier were rewarded. The door popped open and Hope escaped!

She paused just long enough to look back at us, and then vanished into the forest. We were speechless. What now? Would Hope recognize this area she had spent so much time in as a wee little cub? Would she remember the white pine that was her security?

Lynn homed in on Lily’s signal and tried something new. At this critical time, could he get Lily to follow him for the good nuts that her fans had sent? The nuts worked. An hour later, as Lynn and Lily were approaching the white pine, Sue rejoined them and said in a hushed voice “There’s Hope.” She had appeared as quickly and silently as she had disappeared earlier.



Lily nursing Hope near white pine just after reunification - May 26, 2010As soon as Lily noticed Hope she ignored us and the nuts. At 30 feet apart, both bears seemed unsure. Hope moved. Lily seemed scared and started up a tree. Then she moved cautiously forward and so did Hope. Less than 10 feet apart and recognition was certain. They quickly came closer and showed what Lynn said was “the most beautiful display of animal emotion” he has ever seen.

Hope cried and tried to get as close to Lily as possible. Lily responded with her sweet motherly grunts—showing her acceptance and more. Hope tried to nurse while Lily half-dragged her toward the white pine where they had nursed so many times in April. Lily lay down and Hope eagerly nursed for the first time in at least 122 hours. We caught a little video of this touching scene and then slipped away.

We checked on them today and everything seemed back to normal with them playing and nursing. We will never take such simple family scenes for granted again!

We promised an update in Juliet but don’t have much yet to report. Yesterday a homeowner reported seeing her and said she appeared to be injured. He thought she had perhaps been hit by a car. He did not see any cubs, but they could have been left at a bed tree. The call came while we were in the midst of working to reunite Lily and Hope so we couldn’t go check her out. Hopefully we will be a little less busy when the next call comes in.

Bears face many challenges. 82% of the deaths documented in our 44 years of study have been from humans (shooting, trapping, vehicles, trains, electrocution, etc.). We’re glad in the case of Lily and Hope we could do something to help and obtain useful scientific information in the process.

Once again we’re overwhelmed by the generosity Lily and Hope fans have shown. We are shaking our head in disbelief at the thermometer level. Wow! Thank you so much! Your contributions will go a long way to furthering our educational efforts.

—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, North American Bear Center.·

Lai

I know Doogs it's been a real cliffhanger - i am almost scared to look in case Lily does something else untoward with Hope.

Oh yes and i used to love Jackanory !!!

Lai

Lai thank you for posting that. I read it at lunch time but the internet is so slow at that time at work, I'm sure they slow it down to keep you off of it, I came out and read it again this evening.
It's wonderful that all has returned to normal for Lily and Hope today and i'm sure we are all a little calmer too. lets hope there are no more saga's like that....dont think we could handle another one.

littlewid-x-

Today's update

Catching up

After 5 days of looking for Hope, we spend today catching up on other things. We could see from Lily’s GPS readings that she and Hope moved 0.36 miles to a new location. We assume they are continuing their reunion by playing, nursing, and foraging together as they did yesterday.



Lily and Cal as yearlings - April 21, 2010We worked hard today to locate Cal to change his GPS unit. We initially found him near a road but he moved off as we entered the woods. We headed back to the van and followed his signal until he was in an area where we could reach him. We parked and hiked 0.75 miles in a logging road. We spotted him foraging along the road. Cal looked back over his shoulder and bolted! Fortunately his GPS is still functioning after 10 days, so we may get another chance.

We got word this afternoon that Juliet was seen crossing an old RR grade with 3 cubs. That was good news. Hopefully she will be sighted again soon when we can connect with her to assess her injuries and re-collar her.

As we write this, June is traveling far outside her territory—further south than we have ever seen her. She may be looking to expand her territory to make room for her daughters Lily and Jewel and her granddaughter Hope.

Bears are currently feeding heavily on vegetation—mainly clover, dandelions, wild lettuce, and peavine. We’ve ground-checked areas where we see clusters of GPS locations and have found huge patches of lush vegetation.

We're humbled by your generous donations. Thank you SO much!

—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, North American Bear Center

Lai

Thanks for the update Lai. We are now being introduced or re-introduced to the other bears in the area.
It's amazing that June is probably expanding her territory to give room to Lily & Hope and Jewel.
Things do seem to be settling down now don't they which is such a relief. I want to revisit the site to get a good handle on all the bears again, my focus has slipped onto just Lily and Hope and I really want to try and keep up with who is who as the updates keep coming in from the centre.

littlewid-x-

Likewise Littlewid - i have really only focused on Lily and Hope, so need to know who's who with the rest of the bears

Lai

Update on Hope from 30th May

Hope Improves



Lily and Hope Play - May 30, 2010What a wonderful resource Lily’s fans are! Again, you all pulled together and came up with good help. Many people came up with great suggestions and your outpouring of concern and offers of help have been heartwarming.

Among the suggestions was a formula that simulates high-fat bear milk. Nearly all the ingredients were available in this small town. We were at the store this morning when it opened to buy canned goat’s milk (and we may be able to get fresh goat’s milk eventually) plus heavy cream, egg yolks, plain yogurt, fish oil, calcium carbonate, Vitamin B complex, and Vitamin C.

We were all worried that Hope was too weak to follow Lily after what we saw yesterday. When we saw on the computer this morning that Lily had moved nearly four tenths of a mile, we wondered if Hope was with her. You can imagine our relief when a perkier Hope bounced into view behind her. Could the cup and a half of sweetened condensed milk last evening have made such a difference?

Lily came over, with shy Hope came cautiously behind. She saw the same container she drank from last night and timidly came up beside Lily to check it out. She loved the new formula!

We were immensely relieved to see the difference in Hope’s zip today. Last evening, she could barely support her weight climbing a short way up a tree. Today, a sound startled Hope and Lily and they both shot up a tree about 15 feet.



Hope and Lily Play - May 30, 2010Hope was more improved on our second visit this afternoon. After drinking as much formula as she wanted, Hope followed Lily 30 feet away where Lily sat down in the nursing position and Hope nursed. She couldn’t have gotten much milk. Lily’s breasts are now smaller and mostly empty except for the hard lumps inside, but the fact they were trying and the fact a small amount of milk was visible, makes us hopeful Lily will increase lactation. We are hoping the lumps in her breasts don’t turn into mastitis. A helpful lactation specialist today figured the lumps were the result of plugged milk ducts, and this can sometimes turn into mastitis.

We are so much more optimistic. Yesterday Hope was lethargic—lying around moaning and whining. Today she was playful—interested in objects to manipulate and initiating play with Lily once again. She has life in her eyes and seems almost her old self, although emaciated.

We will continue to bring Hope formula a couple times a day to the extent possible as long as she needs it. Hope has a strong appetite. She has teeth and is beginning to eat solid wild foods, which is normal for her age. This cub is going to make it.

Thank you for your good support. The anonymous donor has agreed to match 2 to 1 all your contributions from the time we announced it last night through the end of June, up to $100,000. So we’re off and running!

—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, North American Bear Center.

Lai

I agree Doogs - it is amazing what they are doing, and i really hope that Lily and Hope go from strength to strength, it's been a constant worry for them, (and us).

Lai

This has truely been amazing to follow and as you say Doogs, they are doing such an incredible job to keep Lily and Hope together and to nurse Hope back to health, lets just keep our fingers crossed that Lily doesn't have mastitis as that would be so painful and stop Hope from nursing, but its a good sign that she is eating solid food and is being more active.
Thank you for the update Lai, it's one I really look forward too.

littlewid-x-

Update from 31st May

Drama in the Woods

Lynn handed off the previous update to me just before I headed out to bring Hope her first formula made from the fresh goat’s milk. I wanted to get out to her before dark so I figured the update could wait. I located Lily and Hope at a large aspen tree where they were bedded.

I gave Lily a few nuts to keep her busy while I fed Hope. Hope loved the new formula! She also ate all of the cottage cheese—though I think she was really looking for more of the grapes I had mixed in it.

When Lily finished the nuts she roamed around a bit while Hope was finishing up. Then suddenly Lily came rushing back to the bed tree grunting in concern. Hope leapt for the tree and climbed high. Lily stood up against the tree grunting and looking off into the woods. We were not alone.

At first I wondered if there was a person walking along a nearby trail, and then I heard the grunting of another bear. We think of grunting as a friendly sound – but Lily seemed frightened. I could see another bear approaching in the growing darkness. It was a collared bear but I could not see well enough to identify it. I ran through a few frequencies on the telemetry receiver and found it was Lily’s mother June. Lily ran off huffing.

June followed Lily – still grunting. I could hear thrashing of brush and huffing. I monitored their signals as the strength of both decreased as the bears moved away.

I stayed near Hope’s tree, waiting for Lily to return. When I realized that wasn’t going to happen any time soon, I picked my way out of the woods in the dark and headed back to the field station.

As I write this (11:20 PM) Lily is resting nearly a mile away from the Hope’s tree. June is resting 0.35 miles from Lily and 0.63 miles from Hope. I am thankful for the GPS units that give me these locations.

Hope is alone once more. What does this all mean?

There are those reading this that will condemn me for not staying near Hope’s tree. Suffice it to say that I did what I thought best at the time. I can better monitor Lily and June from here. I feel Hope is safe as long as she stays in the tree. Hope is in an area this time that she is very familiar with – unlike last time when she was left in a totally unfamiliar area. Fortunately Hope had eaten quite a bit before Grandma June showed up.

The rollercoaster ride continues for us all. We could all use a break, but it just doesn’t let up.

— Sue Mansfield, Biologist, North American Bear Center

What on earth is happening here? I can hardly bear to read these daily updates.

Lai

These two are determined to give us dramas arent they, how much more can we take At least Hope is safe up the tree and she had eaten. I wonder if grandma June will just wander off and then Hope will come down the tree and reunite with Lily again. It does seem odd that Lily keeps leaving Hope though, or is this natural bear behaviour that they havent seen before, I don't know, I just wish they would stick together.

littlewid-x-

Thank you for posting the updates Lai. No good news I'm afraid. Poor poor little Hope!! I do hope and pray she survives the night and they find her!!

Update June 1, 2010 – 10:00 PM CDTShare
Today at 04:42
Why?

We don’t understand it. We’re all learning together.

It’s 9:15 PM, and we just finished searching around each of the three trees Lily and Hope used yesterday and the places they spent most of their spring. Sue searched most of these places this morning, too. We are desperate to find Hope. She is wet from the rain. Her skinny muscles cannot make much heat, and the temperature is dropping—now 52. Temperatures were in the 70’s when she was lost before. If she makes it through this night, she will be very weak tomorrow. We’ll keep looking. We haven’t given up.

We’re trying to understand the minds of these bears. And we’re wondering how much of this is truly unusual and how much is due to our methods revealing more than we could see before.

In the earlier crisis (May 21), was it abnormal for Lily to be away 2 days before returning to where she left Hope, or was it abnormal for Hope to have left the tree where Lily safely left her? Lily still had milk when she returned to look for Hope on May 23, but Hope was gone.

Why did Lily leave for 2 days that time? Is she a bear that reacts more strongly to other bears being around? Is that why she remained in such small areas near secure refuge trees this spring, often spending entire days in areas less than 50 yards diameter?

In her earlier departure from Hope, it is likely a bear prompted her movement. Last night, it certainly was a bear that prompted her movement. Sue was there and saw it. Hope scampered high into a tree as an intruding bear approached. Although the intruding bear (June, Lily’s mother) was non-threatening—even friendly—from her sounds, Lily was scared. She huffed and moved a mile away.

That in itself was not abandoning Hope. Black bear mothers typically flee from danger, leaving their cubs to climb trees to safety. A difference between black bears and some other bears is that black bear cubs run to trees for safety while other bear cubs run away or to their mothers for safety.

This morning, after finding Hope missing, Sue visited Lily to assess her demeanor and look for any possible injuries. Lily was scared, unusually attentive to unidentified sounds. She was easily startled and frequently started up trees. Lily ignored Sue, of course. Sue is a trusted part of the woodwork. Was Lily worried that June was still around? June had followed Lily when Lily left Hope and the data suggest that they had another encounter this morning at Lily’s bed site a mile from Hope. June then moved nearly a mile southeast, leaving Lily nervous and skittish.

Why did Lily then move a mile north instead of returning east to Hope? Does her lack of milk reduce her urgency to return to Hope? When Lily is with Hope, she nurses her, plays with her, and keeps an eye out for her. Lily seems to truly enjoy Hope.

This past 24 hours is difficult to explain. We are at a loss.

We’re documenting Lily’s and Hope’s behavior. In the future, we’ll obtain detailed comparative data from other mothers with cubs and share that. We’re all learning together.

Thank you for the many ways you are helping with food for Hope, debt reduction, etc. The nuts you sent earlier were a godsend through the earlier crisis and as a distraction for Lily while we were recently feeding Hope.

Thanks for the update Anne-Marie, i was filling in for you while you were away!

What sad sad news, honestly it goes from bad to worse. I really wonder if we will ever undertand why this is happening?

I can honestly say i almost dread the daily updates at the moment.

Lai

Facebook update

Lily is on the move. We anxiously wait to see if she heads back towards where she left Hope.

I'm keeping everything crossed she finds Hope. Its such a worry!!!

News clip! http://www.fox21online.com/news/elys-famous-bear-cub-missing-again-researchers-rethinking-40-years-study