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Re: Lily and Hope - The Black Bear and Cub
Anne-Marie1981 Thu Dec 16, 2010 5:18 pm
Update December 14, 2010 – 7:04 PM CST
by Lily the Black Bear on Wednesday, 15 December 2010 at 02:06
The Lull Deepens
a new look for bear.org
Outside, the wind is still. The crows have gone south. The landscape is silent. Engineers in Minneapolis and Pennsylvania are packing for trips to Ely. Manufacturers are shipping equipment to the Research Center. The forecast is for the minus 20 F temperatures to end and temperatures to be above zero the rest of the week. The Den Cam installation set for Saturday is shaping up.
In preparation for the Den Cam installation, the bear.org website has been overhauled to handle the expected increase in traffic. The new website will be unveiled tomorrow afternoon. The existing bear.org website will be shut down tomorrow at noon Central Time to facilitate the switch to the new website. Thank you for your patience with this process.
Highlights of the new website:
The Latest Daily Update will appear in the upper right of the home page. A link below it will take you to past updates.
Links to the WRI website, Lily the Black Bear Facebook page, and the North American Bear Center Twitter appear at the top of the page.
A rotating module on the left features articles of our choosing and will initially feature articles on hibernation.
We can change it to feature other topics as time goes on. A rotating module on the right hand side of the page features announcements.
The menus contain all the familiar articles.
Once the Lily and Hope Den Cam goes live, we will install a ‘landing page’ on bear.org. Visitors will select either the Den Cam page or the main NABC home page.
The picture is a snapshot of the new bear.org home page. Look closely and you will see some of the features listed above. In Facebook Notes, clicking on pictures doesn’t make them big any more. We don’t know why. It’s a Facebook thing. But if you look to the left of the update and click on Lily the Black Bear’s Notes, the update comes up in a way that clicking does enlarge the pictures. Or read the updates on bear.org where clicking also works.
On Thursday, we install a heater in the den cam equipment shed. On Friday, technicians begin arriving. On Saturday, we snowmobile the equipment to the shed and quietly walk the camera to Lily and Hope’s den. We almost don’t dare to write ‘the Lily and Hope Den Cam then will be streaming online.’ The update for that evening will be a milestone if everything goes as we hope.
On an unrelated note, the BBC let us know that UK actor/writer Stephen Fry did a piece about bears not being able to roar in a popular UK Quiz show called 'QI'. The BBC said all the info was taken from the BBC documentary “Bearwalker of the Northwoods” and the Bear Center’s bear.org web site. The link to the program (http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00wlgqq/QI_Series_8_Horses_and_Hunting/), won’t play in North America but Lily fans in the UK can click and watch. The piece is about 16 minutes into the program.
Suddenly, the thermometer on bear.org jumped a thousand to $521,000. Another pleasant surprise today was the arrival of a check for $39,668. This check from Give MN was for your many donations on November 16. A check from Give MN for another $10,000 should arrive soon. That’s the one for your hard work and generosity in winning second place in number of donations in outstate Minnesota during ‘Give to the Max Day.’ It’s getting exciting. Those checks, together with the jump in the thermometer today, will mean that the Bear Center’s remaining debt by the end of this year will be under $128,000. An amazing year together.
Thank you for all you are doing.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
by Lily the Black Bear on Wednesday, 15 December 2010 at 02:06
The Lull Deepens
a new look for bear.org
Outside, the wind is still. The crows have gone south. The landscape is silent. Engineers in Minneapolis and Pennsylvania are packing for trips to Ely. Manufacturers are shipping equipment to the Research Center. The forecast is for the minus 20 F temperatures to end and temperatures to be above zero the rest of the week. The Den Cam installation set for Saturday is shaping up.
In preparation for the Den Cam installation, the bear.org website has been overhauled to handle the expected increase in traffic. The new website will be unveiled tomorrow afternoon. The existing bear.org website will be shut down tomorrow at noon Central Time to facilitate the switch to the new website. Thank you for your patience with this process.
Highlights of the new website:
The Latest Daily Update will appear in the upper right of the home page. A link below it will take you to past updates.
Links to the WRI website, Lily the Black Bear Facebook page, and the North American Bear Center Twitter appear at the top of the page.
A rotating module on the left features articles of our choosing and will initially feature articles on hibernation.
We can change it to feature other topics as time goes on. A rotating module on the right hand side of the page features announcements.
The menus contain all the familiar articles.
Once the Lily and Hope Den Cam goes live, we will install a ‘landing page’ on bear.org. Visitors will select either the Den Cam page or the main NABC home page.
The picture is a snapshot of the new bear.org home page. Look closely and you will see some of the features listed above. In Facebook Notes, clicking on pictures doesn’t make them big any more. We don’t know why. It’s a Facebook thing. But if you look to the left of the update and click on Lily the Black Bear’s Notes, the update comes up in a way that clicking does enlarge the pictures. Or read the updates on bear.org where clicking also works.
On Thursday, we install a heater in the den cam equipment shed. On Friday, technicians begin arriving. On Saturday, we snowmobile the equipment to the shed and quietly walk the camera to Lily and Hope’s den. We almost don’t dare to write ‘the Lily and Hope Den Cam then will be streaming online.’ The update for that evening will be a milestone if everything goes as we hope.
On an unrelated note, the BBC let us know that UK actor/writer Stephen Fry did a piece about bears not being able to roar in a popular UK Quiz show called 'QI'. The BBC said all the info was taken from the BBC documentary “Bearwalker of the Northwoods” and the Bear Center’s bear.org web site. The link to the program (http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00wlgqq/QI_Series_8_Horses_and_Hunting/), won’t play in North America but Lily fans in the UK can click and watch. The piece is about 16 minutes into the program.
Suddenly, the thermometer on bear.org jumped a thousand to $521,000. Another pleasant surprise today was the arrival of a check for $39,668. This check from Give MN was for your many donations on November 16. A check from Give MN for another $10,000 should arrive soon. That’s the one for your hard work and generosity in winning second place in number of donations in outstate Minnesota during ‘Give to the Max Day.’ It’s getting exciting. Those checks, together with the jump in the thermometer today, will mean that the Bear Center’s remaining debt by the end of this year will be under $128,000. An amazing year together.
Thank you for all you are doing.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
Anne-Marie1981- Posts : 1089
Join date : 2010-05-17
Age : 43
Location : Northamptonshire
Re: Lily and Hope - The Black Bear and Cub
Anne-Marie1981 Thu Dec 16, 2010 5:19 pm
Update December 15, 2010 - 9:15 PM CST
by Lily the Black Bear on Thursday, 16 December 2010 at 03:29
Hungry Honey took the tree treats
Honey nibbling from the snack tree.
We wondered if it would happen. The staff discussed whether Honey would come out and whether the extra electric fence should be activated or not. She did come out. The extra fence was not activated and the regular electric fence is off because it’s in snow. Honey loved the trees and treats. She kept eating until she was done. Your treats were so good, that Honey ignored anything John or Jason offered to divert her. Bears will be bears. For now, the temptations are removed. The word is to get a battery, activate the extra fence, put the trees back, and see what happens.
Maybe we should skip the trees and just hang treats out of Honey’s reach for the birds. But we like to feed Rocky, too. The staff will get it right. That’s why we call them the Miracle Team.
But for today, Honey had a treat and it’s back to the drawing board while the birds eat from feeders for awhile.
Yesterday, Honey was sleeping soundly with temperatures near 20 below. She was breathing 3.3 times a minute with her nose deep in bedding. Breathing into the fluffy bedding made of leaves helps her conserve water and warmth by re-breathing some of the exhabled air.
Today, the temperature got up to 3 below. Maybe she got a whiff of suet, peanut butter, and sunflower seeds only 15-20 yards from her den. Some bears would not care about that when they are hibernating. Honey does, though. Her brown fur makes us thinks she has western genes adapted for an area that sometimes has winter food available. Bears in such areas are adapted for coming out to forage if food is available. It’s the same in the eastern deciduous forest where there are sometimes good beechnut, hickory nut, or acorns crops to be found under the snow all winter. After a good beech nut crop, Sue Mansfield tracked several bears in the snow in southern New Hampshire all winter long. The bears sniffed out the nuts and dug down through the snow. But here in northern Minnesota, bears go into dens and stay there no matter what the temperature or food availability. People who feed bears in northern Minnesota see bears abandon food and go into dens in September or October. People who feed bears in southeastern states see bears for most or all of the winter. Honey is supposed to be on a diet, but she apparently has no willpower.
Jason is trying to get the webcam in Ted and Lucky’s den to work. He is communicating in techno-lingo with Voltz Technology in Ely and WildEarth.TV in South Africa. Words we hear include network, ports, video server, modem, IP address, access, stream, link, Realplayer, Quicktime, TCP, and UDP. They’ll work it out eventually.
Den Cam hardware, waiting to be installed.
The Lily and Hope den cam team are shipping equipment, making calculations, and getting ready to travel here. Things are coming together.
We’re trying to get used to the new bear.org website and can see that it has several advantages.
Meanwhile, you are donating to the Ely Area Food Shelf at PO Box 786, Ely, MN 55731 and showing the town folk that the radio-collared bears bring good things to Ely. All donors will be listed in the newspapers with a special section for Lily fans.
To further help protect Lily and the other radio-collared bears, you are writing letters to Governor-elect Mark Dayton to let him know the world cares. He is at Transition Office, 800 Minnehaha Avenue East, Suite 201, St Paul, MN 55106.
Thank you for all you are doing.
The oranges you sent to the Bear Center are going fast. Thank you again.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
by Lily the Black Bear on Thursday, 16 December 2010 at 03:29
Hungry Honey took the tree treats
Honey nibbling from the snack tree.
We wondered if it would happen. The staff discussed whether Honey would come out and whether the extra electric fence should be activated or not. She did come out. The extra fence was not activated and the regular electric fence is off because it’s in snow. Honey loved the trees and treats. She kept eating until she was done. Your treats were so good, that Honey ignored anything John or Jason offered to divert her. Bears will be bears. For now, the temptations are removed. The word is to get a battery, activate the extra fence, put the trees back, and see what happens.
Maybe we should skip the trees and just hang treats out of Honey’s reach for the birds. But we like to feed Rocky, too. The staff will get it right. That’s why we call them the Miracle Team.
But for today, Honey had a treat and it’s back to the drawing board while the birds eat from feeders for awhile.
Yesterday, Honey was sleeping soundly with temperatures near 20 below. She was breathing 3.3 times a minute with her nose deep in bedding. Breathing into the fluffy bedding made of leaves helps her conserve water and warmth by re-breathing some of the exhabled air.
Today, the temperature got up to 3 below. Maybe she got a whiff of suet, peanut butter, and sunflower seeds only 15-20 yards from her den. Some bears would not care about that when they are hibernating. Honey does, though. Her brown fur makes us thinks she has western genes adapted for an area that sometimes has winter food available. Bears in such areas are adapted for coming out to forage if food is available. It’s the same in the eastern deciduous forest where there are sometimes good beechnut, hickory nut, or acorns crops to be found under the snow all winter. After a good beech nut crop, Sue Mansfield tracked several bears in the snow in southern New Hampshire all winter long. The bears sniffed out the nuts and dug down through the snow. But here in northern Minnesota, bears go into dens and stay there no matter what the temperature or food availability. People who feed bears in northern Minnesota see bears abandon food and go into dens in September or October. People who feed bears in southeastern states see bears for most or all of the winter. Honey is supposed to be on a diet, but she apparently has no willpower.
Jason is trying to get the webcam in Ted and Lucky’s den to work. He is communicating in techno-lingo with Voltz Technology in Ely and WildEarth.TV in South Africa. Words we hear include network, ports, video server, modem, IP address, access, stream, link, Realplayer, Quicktime, TCP, and UDP. They’ll work it out eventually.
Den Cam hardware, waiting to be installed.
The Lily and Hope den cam team are shipping equipment, making calculations, and getting ready to travel here. Things are coming together.
We’re trying to get used to the new bear.org website and can see that it has several advantages.
Meanwhile, you are donating to the Ely Area Food Shelf at PO Box 786, Ely, MN 55731 and showing the town folk that the radio-collared bears bring good things to Ely. All donors will be listed in the newspapers with a special section for Lily fans.
To further help protect Lily and the other radio-collared bears, you are writing letters to Governor-elect Mark Dayton to let him know the world cares. He is at Transition Office, 800 Minnehaha Avenue East, Suite 201, St Paul, MN 55106.
Thank you for all you are doing.
The oranges you sent to the Bear Center are going fast. Thank you again.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
Anne-Marie1981- Posts : 1089
Join date : 2010-05-17
Age : 43
Location : Northamptonshire
Re: Lily and Hope - The Black Bear and Cub
Anne-Marie1981 Thu Dec 23, 2010 11:04 am
Update December 16, 2010 – 7:40 PM CST
by Lily the Black Bear on Friday, 17 December 2010 at 02:12
Den Cam Delayed
den shed heater installed today
The Den Cam Team made the difficult decision today to delay installation of the camera at Lily and Hope’s den. Bill Powers and his engineers at PixController, Inc. in Pennsylvania have been working long and hard to put together a solution to stream video 24x7 from such a remote location. At this point a key piece of the setup is missing—a static IP address from Verizon. Without that static IP address, WildEarth can’t reliably pull the den cam video stream—and, if they can’t pull it, they can’t push it out to the Internet for us all to see. We can’t install a den cam solution that we know isn’t reliable.
However, progress is being made. Today a propane heater was installed in the den shed to keep the temperature within the tolerance levels for the equipment it will eventually house. This weekend we’ll complete other work on the den shed—like installing solar panels—so everything will be a ready as possible for the camera equipment when it arrives. The weather has warmed some and we are taking that as a good omen that the den cam will come together soon.
Jack D Gordon Elementary School bulletin board
We are all anxious for this den cam to be installed. We recently received a query from Crissy Ravelo, PRE K teacher at Jack D Gordon Elementary School in Miami, Florida. She sent along a picture of her bulletin board. It shows how eager her class is for the cam to go live—and they’re spreading the word about bear.org too.
Stay tuned—we’ll post the new install date as soon as it is determined!
The delay in the den cam coincides with problems with the new bear.org website. The new template is conflicting with payment processing for web store purchases and donations. Did we mention Murphy’s Law in an earlier update? The den cam delay buys us a little extra time to sort out the bear.org issues.
Don’t believe everything you read. A recent web news article indicated we had ‘confirmed’ that Lily is pregnant. Not so. We suspect Lily is pregnant, but we won’t know for sure until she goes into labor in late January.
We continue to be amazed by the generosity of Lily fans and by the hard work Team Bear has done on the fundraising efforts. When we think back to where the debt was a year ago, we are humbled. ‘Thank You’ doesn’t seem enough.
And ‘Thank You’ to Team Protect for conducting a top notch letter-writing campaign for protection of radio-collared bears. Copies of the letters are still arriving.
Thank you for your continuing interest and support of our research and education efforts.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
by Lily the Black Bear on Friday, 17 December 2010 at 02:12
Den Cam Delayed
den shed heater installed today
The Den Cam Team made the difficult decision today to delay installation of the camera at Lily and Hope’s den. Bill Powers and his engineers at PixController, Inc. in Pennsylvania have been working long and hard to put together a solution to stream video 24x7 from such a remote location. At this point a key piece of the setup is missing—a static IP address from Verizon. Without that static IP address, WildEarth can’t reliably pull the den cam video stream—and, if they can’t pull it, they can’t push it out to the Internet for us all to see. We can’t install a den cam solution that we know isn’t reliable.
However, progress is being made. Today a propane heater was installed in the den shed to keep the temperature within the tolerance levels for the equipment it will eventually house. This weekend we’ll complete other work on the den shed—like installing solar panels—so everything will be a ready as possible for the camera equipment when it arrives. The weather has warmed some and we are taking that as a good omen that the den cam will come together soon.
Jack D Gordon Elementary School bulletin board
We are all anxious for this den cam to be installed. We recently received a query from Crissy Ravelo, PRE K teacher at Jack D Gordon Elementary School in Miami, Florida. She sent along a picture of her bulletin board. It shows how eager her class is for the cam to go live—and they’re spreading the word about bear.org too.
Stay tuned—we’ll post the new install date as soon as it is determined!
The delay in the den cam coincides with problems with the new bear.org website. The new template is conflicting with payment processing for web store purchases and donations. Did we mention Murphy’s Law in an earlier update? The den cam delay buys us a little extra time to sort out the bear.org issues.
Don’t believe everything you read. A recent web news article indicated we had ‘confirmed’ that Lily is pregnant. Not so. We suspect Lily is pregnant, but we won’t know for sure until she goes into labor in late January.
We continue to be amazed by the generosity of Lily fans and by the hard work Team Bear has done on the fundraising efforts. When we think back to where the debt was a year ago, we are humbled. ‘Thank You’ doesn’t seem enough.
And ‘Thank You’ to Team Protect for conducting a top notch letter-writing campaign for protection of radio-collared bears. Copies of the letters are still arriving.
Thank you for your continuing interest and support of our research and education efforts.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
Anne-Marie1981- Posts : 1089
Join date : 2010-05-17
Age : 43
Location : Northamptonshire
Re: Lily and Hope - The Black Bear and Cub
Anne-Marie1981 Thu Dec 23, 2010 11:05 am
Update December 17, 2010 – 9:40 PM CST
by Lily the Black Bear on Saturday, 18 December 2010 at 04:01
Two week delay!
box containing solar panels
It is now looking like December 30th. We very much appreciate Verizon partnering with us on the den cam and waiving fees, but nothing will work until they assign a static IP address and they haven’t done that yet. The whole installation team had built their work plans and airline reservations around the install date of December 18 (tomorrow), which now won’t work. The next possible date is December 30th. A major disappointment and loss of data. Thank you for your encouragement and offers to help.
This afternoon, part of the team was here at the Research Center assembling the solar panels and planning out how to connect them to the den shed. Tomorrow, we’ll snowmobile the ‘PLEASE HANDLE WITH CARE’ panels and batteries to the site and take pictures of them in place. We’ll get everything ready that we can, but the den cams themselves and installation of the transmission equipment will have to wait until the 30th. Cross your fingers.
On the plus side, Bill Powers of PixController updated the power consumption information on the system and it is lower than previously thought. This could mean our power supply plans will work better than expected. We thank Todd at Wholesale Solar for their discount on the solar equipment and batteries and for donating overnight shipping to get it here for the scheduled installation tomorrow. Others partnering with us are PixController of Pennsylvania, White Wolf Entertainment of Minneapolis, WildEarth.TV of South Africa, Digi International of Minneapolis, and Ritron, Inc., of Indianapolis.
We are anxiously waiting for 4G cell phone coverage to give enough bandwidth for two cameras (inside and outside the den) in high definition. We hope that will be available next winter. We were thinking about the history of all this and how fortunate we were to know the right people to get in on cutting edge technology. We did a den cam ten years ago when Whiteheart denned a few hundred feet from a house. The best we could do then was pictures that updated every 30 seconds. Last winter, we had DSL and power at a house 200 feet from the den. This winter we have the best technology available for a remote camera in the woods. Next winter, we’ll probably be able to see more and learn more.
Fox 21 News in Duluth did a short piece on the den cam this evening at 6 and 9 PM.
Thank you for all you are doing.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
by Lily the Black Bear on Saturday, 18 December 2010 at 04:01
Two week delay!
box containing solar panels
It is now looking like December 30th. We very much appreciate Verizon partnering with us on the den cam and waiving fees, but nothing will work until they assign a static IP address and they haven’t done that yet. The whole installation team had built their work plans and airline reservations around the install date of December 18 (tomorrow), which now won’t work. The next possible date is December 30th. A major disappointment and loss of data. Thank you for your encouragement and offers to help.
This afternoon, part of the team was here at the Research Center assembling the solar panels and planning out how to connect them to the den shed. Tomorrow, we’ll snowmobile the ‘PLEASE HANDLE WITH CARE’ panels and batteries to the site and take pictures of them in place. We’ll get everything ready that we can, but the den cams themselves and installation of the transmission equipment will have to wait until the 30th. Cross your fingers.
On the plus side, Bill Powers of PixController updated the power consumption information on the system and it is lower than previously thought. This could mean our power supply plans will work better than expected. We thank Todd at Wholesale Solar for their discount on the solar equipment and batteries and for donating overnight shipping to get it here for the scheduled installation tomorrow. Others partnering with us are PixController of Pennsylvania, White Wolf Entertainment of Minneapolis, WildEarth.TV of South Africa, Digi International of Minneapolis, and Ritron, Inc., of Indianapolis.
We are anxiously waiting for 4G cell phone coverage to give enough bandwidth for two cameras (inside and outside the den) in high definition. We hope that will be available next winter. We were thinking about the history of all this and how fortunate we were to know the right people to get in on cutting edge technology. We did a den cam ten years ago when Whiteheart denned a few hundred feet from a house. The best we could do then was pictures that updated every 30 seconds. Last winter, we had DSL and power at a house 200 feet from the den. This winter we have the best technology available for a remote camera in the woods. Next winter, we’ll probably be able to see more and learn more.
Fox 21 News in Duluth did a short piece on the den cam this evening at 6 and 9 PM.
Thank you for all you are doing.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
Anne-Marie1981- Posts : 1089
Join date : 2010-05-17
Age : 43
Location : Northamptonshire
Re: Lily and Hope - The Black Bear and Cub
Anne-Marie1981 Thu Dec 23, 2010 11:05 am
Update December 18, 2010 – 8:21 PM CST
by Lily the Black Bear on Sunday, 19 December 2010 at 03:29
Solar panels go up!
Jason and Sue moving solar panels to den shed
On the one hand, the den cam is delayed 12 days. On the other hand, December 30 is 9 days earlier than last year. Maybe the cup is half full. Although the big ‘Thank You’ will come after December 30, we are deeply grateful to the team of engineers and technicians that has worked to make this a success. The delay is not their fault, as you know.
Jim and Jason installing solar panels
Today, we set up the solar panels, batteries, and cellular antenna. In addition to the technology, we went back to our college textbooks to get some sun facts to see how to aim the solar panels. At 45 degrees north latitude (which is Minneapolis), the sun is 21.5 degrees above the horizon at noon on December 21. That’s the shortest day of the year. For the next 180 days, the sun gets an average of 0.2611 degree higher each day to reach 45 degrees on March 21 and 68.5 degrees on June 21. The den is actually a couple degrees of latitude north of Minneapolis, at 47 degrees, 49 minutes north latitude, so the sun will be a couple degrees lower than the book listed for Minneapolis.
solar panels in place!
Since we won’t install the den cam until December 30, the sun will be up a couple degrees from the solstice. We figure the bears will leave about April 10 when the sun will have reached an azimuth of 48 degrees at noon that day. That’s quite a difference in height above the horizon. We’ll have to adjust the solar panels periodically. Today, we aimed the panels 27 degrees above the horizon. The beginning of February, we’ll aim them at 35 degrees. The beginning of March, we’ll aim them at 43 degrees.
Meanwhile, the days will be getting longer and the sun brighter, giving us more electricity to use the PTZ (Pan, Tilt, Zoom) camera that will be outside the den. We don’t have enough electricity or bandwidth to use both at the same time this year, and the PTZ camera uses more electricity. But by the time the bears start coming out for periods in spring, there should be enough electricity to cover it. When we install the cameras on December 30, there will be only 8 hours and 25 minutes between sunrise and sunset at this latitude. On April 10, there will be 13 hours and 22 minutes. The big question is whether the short days of January will provide enough solar power to run the system or if we will be making frequent trips to exchange batteries or run a generator to charge batteries.
No one has been to Lily and Hope’s den since October 29. That was before the snow. The den shed is about 80 yards away from it. We try to be quiet at the shed, but the bears probably hear us. They certainly hear us arrive on snowmobiles, but they heard snowmobiles go right past their den on the lakeshore last winter and got used to it. That should help us this winter in making periodic visits. What an opportunity with these bears!
And what a creative bunch you are! The Lily Fan's Digital Holiday Parade (https://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=314273&id=263755115498&saved)is a delight. Such skill and creativity to create those floats with the bears we know. The photos generated some big belly laughs here as we recognized the people and bears and what you had done. So funny and clever.
The Ely Timberjay ran a nice article giving credit to Lily fans for the $20,000 you worked so hard to get for Ely’s Schools. The link is http://timberjay.com/stories/20000-grant-for-schools,7785
Teasers for the BBC series “The Bear Family & Me (Gordon Buchanan)” are posted at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuDjVpbyzvQ&feature=channel and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEZ-yQ9lTeE&feature=channel. If these teasers prove popular it may increase the chance the series will be picked up by an American broadcaster.
Thank you for all you do!
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
by Lily the Black Bear on Sunday, 19 December 2010 at 03:29
Solar panels go up!
Jason and Sue moving solar panels to den shed
On the one hand, the den cam is delayed 12 days. On the other hand, December 30 is 9 days earlier than last year. Maybe the cup is half full. Although the big ‘Thank You’ will come after December 30, we are deeply grateful to the team of engineers and technicians that has worked to make this a success. The delay is not their fault, as you know.
Jim and Jason installing solar panels
Today, we set up the solar panels, batteries, and cellular antenna. In addition to the technology, we went back to our college textbooks to get some sun facts to see how to aim the solar panels. At 45 degrees north latitude (which is Minneapolis), the sun is 21.5 degrees above the horizon at noon on December 21. That’s the shortest day of the year. For the next 180 days, the sun gets an average of 0.2611 degree higher each day to reach 45 degrees on March 21 and 68.5 degrees on June 21. The den is actually a couple degrees of latitude north of Minneapolis, at 47 degrees, 49 minutes north latitude, so the sun will be a couple degrees lower than the book listed for Minneapolis.
solar panels in place!
Since we won’t install the den cam until December 30, the sun will be up a couple degrees from the solstice. We figure the bears will leave about April 10 when the sun will have reached an azimuth of 48 degrees at noon that day. That’s quite a difference in height above the horizon. We’ll have to adjust the solar panels periodically. Today, we aimed the panels 27 degrees above the horizon. The beginning of February, we’ll aim them at 35 degrees. The beginning of March, we’ll aim them at 43 degrees.
Meanwhile, the days will be getting longer and the sun brighter, giving us more electricity to use the PTZ (Pan, Tilt, Zoom) camera that will be outside the den. We don’t have enough electricity or bandwidth to use both at the same time this year, and the PTZ camera uses more electricity. But by the time the bears start coming out for periods in spring, there should be enough electricity to cover it. When we install the cameras on December 30, there will be only 8 hours and 25 minutes between sunrise and sunset at this latitude. On April 10, there will be 13 hours and 22 minutes. The big question is whether the short days of January will provide enough solar power to run the system or if we will be making frequent trips to exchange batteries or run a generator to charge batteries.
No one has been to Lily and Hope’s den since October 29. That was before the snow. The den shed is about 80 yards away from it. We try to be quiet at the shed, but the bears probably hear us. They certainly hear us arrive on snowmobiles, but they heard snowmobiles go right past their den on the lakeshore last winter and got used to it. That should help us this winter in making periodic visits. What an opportunity with these bears!
And what a creative bunch you are! The Lily Fan's Digital Holiday Parade (https://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=314273&id=263755115498&saved)is a delight. Such skill and creativity to create those floats with the bears we know. The photos generated some big belly laughs here as we recognized the people and bears and what you had done. So funny and clever.
The Ely Timberjay ran a nice article giving credit to Lily fans for the $20,000 you worked so hard to get for Ely’s Schools. The link is http://timberjay.com/stories/20000-grant-for-schools,7785
Teasers for the BBC series “The Bear Family & Me (Gordon Buchanan)” are posted at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuDjVpbyzvQ&feature=channel and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEZ-yQ9lTeE&feature=channel. If these teasers prove popular it may increase the chance the series will be picked up by an American broadcaster.
Thank you for all you do!
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
Anne-Marie1981- Posts : 1089
Join date : 2010-05-17
Age : 43
Location : Northamptonshire
Re: Lily and Hope - The Black Bear and Cub
Anne-Marie1981 Thu Dec 23, 2010 11:06 am
Update December 19, 2010 – 10:15 PM CST
by Lily the Black Bear on Monday, 20 December 2010 at 04:48
Solar panels are generating power!
solar panels soaking up the rays
We snowmobiled to the den shed under overcast skies today to finish wiring the battery array, test the solar panels, connect and test the backup generator, and position the multi-band antenna for the best cell signal.
We listened for Lily’s radio-signal shortly after arriving and found it coming from the direction of the den and inactive. This meant the collar was not moving. The antenna is embedded in the length of the collar so it wraps around the bear’s neck. This means the signal strength varies with head movement. Our ride in didn’t disturb Lily enough to cause movement. Two hours later we listened again and caught just enough variability in the signal to assure us the collar was still on Lily. She was likely arranging bedding like we witnessed so many times on last winter’s den cam.
battery array in den shed
While we were there, the clouds began to thin enough for the sun to cast dim shadows. The light dusting of snow on the solar panels immediately began melting. As soon as the wiring of the 8-battery array was complete, we flipped the switch and eagerly watched the readout of the power output from the panels. It fluctuated between 1.8 amps and 7 amps as the thin clouds moved over. We expect much higher output under full sun.
Before heading for the den shed, we had mapped the location of the shed in relation to the nearest cell tower and determined a compass reading for positioning the antenna. We were right on. After running a throughput test on the initial position and then moving the antenna slightly to each side and retesting, we returned to the first position. We were pleased with the throughput test average of 0.47 Mb per second.
Educational Outreach Team
We are deeply grateful to the many volunteers who are working to help is in so many ways. Tonight we wish to introduce the talented hard-working members of the Educational Outreach Team who are striving to bring our educational message to schools across the country.
Black Bear Box Contributors
Penni Storts – Ohio
Kelie Stegh – Iowa
Denise Beverly – Tennessee
Mary Anderson – Minnesota
Sarah Endsley – Minnesota
Kim A. Cabrera – California
Connie Schutta
Cathy Nagle-Ervin – Ohio
Tom Hennigan – New York
Trish Kirk, BBB Coordinator – Wisconsin
Curriculum Contributors
Helen Schwarz – New York
Penni Storts – Ohio
Kelie Stegh – Iowa
Tom Hennigan – New York
Betsy Flaten – Minnesota
Eileen Brouddus – Kansas
Rhonda Hennis – North Carolina
Tom Hennigan – New York
Sarah Endsley – Minnesota
Diane McGraw – Iowa
Cheryl Timmons – California
Technical Support
Eileen Brouddus – Kansas
Resource List
Betsy Flaten – Minnesota
Web Support, Grant Writing, Graphic Arts
Linda Gibson – California
Nadine Long – Oregon
Thank you to each and every one of the Educational Outreach Team for the good work you are doing!
Thank you for all you do.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
by Lily the Black Bear on Monday, 20 December 2010 at 04:48
Solar panels are generating power!
solar panels soaking up the rays
We snowmobiled to the den shed under overcast skies today to finish wiring the battery array, test the solar panels, connect and test the backup generator, and position the multi-band antenna for the best cell signal.
We listened for Lily’s radio-signal shortly after arriving and found it coming from the direction of the den and inactive. This meant the collar was not moving. The antenna is embedded in the length of the collar so it wraps around the bear’s neck. This means the signal strength varies with head movement. Our ride in didn’t disturb Lily enough to cause movement. Two hours later we listened again and caught just enough variability in the signal to assure us the collar was still on Lily. She was likely arranging bedding like we witnessed so many times on last winter’s den cam.
battery array in den shed
While we were there, the clouds began to thin enough for the sun to cast dim shadows. The light dusting of snow on the solar panels immediately began melting. As soon as the wiring of the 8-battery array was complete, we flipped the switch and eagerly watched the readout of the power output from the panels. It fluctuated between 1.8 amps and 7 amps as the thin clouds moved over. We expect much higher output under full sun.
Before heading for the den shed, we had mapped the location of the shed in relation to the nearest cell tower and determined a compass reading for positioning the antenna. We were right on. After running a throughput test on the initial position and then moving the antenna slightly to each side and retesting, we returned to the first position. We were pleased with the throughput test average of 0.47 Mb per second.
Educational Outreach Team
We are deeply grateful to the many volunteers who are working to help is in so many ways. Tonight we wish to introduce the talented hard-working members of the Educational Outreach Team who are striving to bring our educational message to schools across the country.
Black Bear Box Contributors
Penni Storts – Ohio
Kelie Stegh – Iowa
Denise Beverly – Tennessee
Mary Anderson – Minnesota
Sarah Endsley – Minnesota
Kim A. Cabrera – California
Connie Schutta
Cathy Nagle-Ervin – Ohio
Tom Hennigan – New York
Trish Kirk, BBB Coordinator – Wisconsin
Curriculum Contributors
Helen Schwarz – New York
Penni Storts – Ohio
Kelie Stegh – Iowa
Tom Hennigan – New York
Betsy Flaten – Minnesota
Eileen Brouddus – Kansas
Rhonda Hennis – North Carolina
Tom Hennigan – New York
Sarah Endsley – Minnesota
Diane McGraw – Iowa
Cheryl Timmons – California
Technical Support
Eileen Brouddus – Kansas
Resource List
Betsy Flaten – Minnesota
Web Support, Grant Writing, Graphic Arts
Linda Gibson – California
Nadine Long – Oregon
Thank you to each and every one of the Educational Outreach Team for the good work you are doing!
Thank you for all you do.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
Anne-Marie1981- Posts : 1089
Join date : 2010-05-17
Age : 43
Location : Northamptonshire
Re: Lily and Hope - The Black Bear and Cub
Anne-Marie1981 Thu Dec 23, 2010 11:06 am
Update December 20, 2010 – 8:15 PM CST
by Lily the Black Bear on Tuesday, 21 December 2010 at 02:55
Honey roams
Honey - December 20, 2010
As we all patiently (?) wait for the Lily den cam to be installed, Honey bear has been providing entertainment for the faithful NABC pond cam watchers. Today she made yet another foray from her den to check for food but found little. She briefly stepped on the scale—and at 446 pounds obviously has plenty of fat for the winter. This pattern of roaming is similar to her behavior last year at this time. In contrast, Ted and Lucky haven’t ventured from their den for weeks.
Tonight we salute and give BIG THANKS to Team Protect for their outstanding letter-writing campaign to gain protection for Lily and the other radio-collared bears. Their well-thought-out talking points and guidelines resulted in many thoughtful letters we believe will help convince Governor-elect Dayton to support protection. Copies of letters are still coming in to WRI.
Team Protect Members
Patrick McKibbage (MOE)
Kristin McKibbage Gross
Sue Gottscho
Michele Chartier
Lianne Muhl
We learned that a laudable stack of donations arrived at the Ely Food Shelf today. You are making the holidays brighter for those in need.
Thank you for all you are doing.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
by Lily the Black Bear on Tuesday, 21 December 2010 at 02:55
Honey roams
Honey - December 20, 2010
As we all patiently (?) wait for the Lily den cam to be installed, Honey bear has been providing entertainment for the faithful NABC pond cam watchers. Today she made yet another foray from her den to check for food but found little. She briefly stepped on the scale—and at 446 pounds obviously has plenty of fat for the winter. This pattern of roaming is similar to her behavior last year at this time. In contrast, Ted and Lucky haven’t ventured from their den for weeks.
Tonight we salute and give BIG THANKS to Team Protect for their outstanding letter-writing campaign to gain protection for Lily and the other radio-collared bears. Their well-thought-out talking points and guidelines resulted in many thoughtful letters we believe will help convince Governor-elect Dayton to support protection. Copies of letters are still coming in to WRI.
Team Protect Members
Patrick McKibbage (MOE)
Kristin McKibbage Gross
Sue Gottscho
Michele Chartier
Lianne Muhl
We learned that a laudable stack of donations arrived at the Ely Food Shelf today. You are making the holidays brighter for those in need.
Thank you for all you are doing.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
Anne-Marie1981- Posts : 1089
Join date : 2010-05-17
Age : 43
Location : Northamptonshire
Re: Lily and Hope - The Black Bear and Cub
Anne-Marie1981 Thu Dec 23, 2010 11:07 am
Update December 21, 2010 – 7:05 PM CST
by Lily the Black Bear on Wednesday, 22 December 2010 at 01:31
Good things happening
Inside, it was a day of paperwork, mostly following up on the good work of Team Protect and your letters in support of protection for the radio-collared bears.
The good news is that we got the much-needed static IP address and tests of the equipment sending a video stream from Pennsylvania to South Africa gave optimistic results. The video stream from Lily and Hope’s den on 3G cellular this winter might be as good as it was on DSL last winter. Doug Hajicek let us know that Cinequipt in Minneapolis has once again donated a microphone. They have good equipment, so the den sounds this winter might be as good as those from the $5,000 microphone they loaned last winter. We won’t have the hum of last winter. We know now to run a separate cable for the microphone.
With optimism in the air, it was fitting today to get Clare McCuen’s 32-page booklet ‘Lilypad Lingo.’ What a delightful, fun reminder of the words you came up with to describe Lily’s den and the different meanings other common words came to have for Lilypadders. It is mostly posts from about 73 of you on Lily the Bear’s Facebook page. So clever and bright! The booklet will be part of the Lily and Hope exhibit for everyone to page through.
BBC Producer Ted Oakes sent an advertisement for the BBC series ‘The Bear Family and Me’ with a nice picture of Lily being curious about Gordon Buchanan’s hair. Clips from the series can be seen at http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/life/American_Black_Bear. Not all of the clips on that page work outside of the UK, but those from ‘The Bear Family and Me’ should play.
Lilypad Picnic Committee
A big thank you to the Lilypad Picnic Committee! They came through in a big way last year and are already planning the second annual Lilypad Picnic for July 22-24, 2011. The Mayor of Ely is excited that the planners rented Whiteside Park in the middle of Ely to have more room for more people. You have no idea what good will is coming your way from Elyites. It’s one of the reasons 68 of the 70 business-owners enthusiastically signed the petition for protection of the radio-collared bears. We’re looking forward to putting faces with names of more of you in 2011.
Lilypad Picnic Committee
Kim Breimeier
Jen McCron
Lilypad Jenn Smith
Whimsy Linda Zoibro
Sandie Donner
Along that line, your donations to the Ely Food Shelf have climbed over $1,000, and your donations were mentioned in a big article with a picture of Lily and Hope on the front page (plus page 9) of the Sunday Mesabi Daily News. The article was about the good Lily and Hope and you are bringing to the region.
Thank you for all you are doing for the bears and toward getting them protected. After 10 years of trying, this year, with you, looks like the best chance ever for getting the radio-collared bears protected.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
by Lily the Black Bear on Wednesday, 22 December 2010 at 01:31
Good things happening
Inside, it was a day of paperwork, mostly following up on the good work of Team Protect and your letters in support of protection for the radio-collared bears.
The good news is that we got the much-needed static IP address and tests of the equipment sending a video stream from Pennsylvania to South Africa gave optimistic results. The video stream from Lily and Hope’s den on 3G cellular this winter might be as good as it was on DSL last winter. Doug Hajicek let us know that Cinequipt in Minneapolis has once again donated a microphone. They have good equipment, so the den sounds this winter might be as good as those from the $5,000 microphone they loaned last winter. We won’t have the hum of last winter. We know now to run a separate cable for the microphone.
With optimism in the air, it was fitting today to get Clare McCuen’s 32-page booklet ‘Lilypad Lingo.’ What a delightful, fun reminder of the words you came up with to describe Lily’s den and the different meanings other common words came to have for Lilypadders. It is mostly posts from about 73 of you on Lily the Bear’s Facebook page. So clever and bright! The booklet will be part of the Lily and Hope exhibit for everyone to page through.
BBC Producer Ted Oakes sent an advertisement for the BBC series ‘The Bear Family and Me’ with a nice picture of Lily being curious about Gordon Buchanan’s hair. Clips from the series can be seen at http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/life/American_Black_Bear. Not all of the clips on that page work outside of the UK, but those from ‘The Bear Family and Me’ should play.
Lilypad Picnic Committee
A big thank you to the Lilypad Picnic Committee! They came through in a big way last year and are already planning the second annual Lilypad Picnic for July 22-24, 2011. The Mayor of Ely is excited that the planners rented Whiteside Park in the middle of Ely to have more room for more people. You have no idea what good will is coming your way from Elyites. It’s one of the reasons 68 of the 70 business-owners enthusiastically signed the petition for protection of the radio-collared bears. We’re looking forward to putting faces with names of more of you in 2011.
Lilypad Picnic Committee
Kim Breimeier
Jen McCron
Lilypad Jenn Smith
Whimsy Linda Zoibro
Sandie Donner
Along that line, your donations to the Ely Food Shelf have climbed over $1,000, and your donations were mentioned in a big article with a picture of Lily and Hope on the front page (plus page 9) of the Sunday Mesabi Daily News. The article was about the good Lily and Hope and you are bringing to the region.
Thank you for all you are doing for the bears and toward getting them protected. After 10 years of trying, this year, with you, looks like the best chance ever for getting the radio-collared bears protected.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
Anne-Marie1981- Posts : 1089
Join date : 2010-05-17
Age : 43
Location : Northamptonshire
Re: Lily and Hope - The Black Bear and Cub
Anne-Marie1981 Thu Dec 23, 2010 11:08 am
Update December 22, 2010 – 8:54 PM CST
by Lily the Black Bear on Thursday, 23 December 2010 at 03:29
Honey up again
No bear news except that Honey was up again. At 8 AM, she was in her den breathing about as slowly as one would expect—an even 3 breaths per minute. Later she was up checking for tidbits. We hope she loses a good amount over winter. Last winter she lost very little. The little bit she ate in her state of reduced metabolism was enough to keep her from losing a normal amount over winter. Her current weight of 446 pounds is heavier than any wild female that’s ever been part of our research.
Speaking about the research, a Lily fan discovered this article about our research in a 1992 issue of National Wildlife Magazine http://www.nwf.org/News-and-Magazines/National-Wildlife/Animals/Archives/1992/He-s-Just-One-of-the-Bears.aspx. The article includes Gerry, who Lynn says is the only bear that ever really liked him. It was nice to reminisce, but we’ve come a long way since then.
And we’ll come a good bit further when we learn what Lily and Hope have to show us this winter on the den cam.
A big thank you to Team Bear for the creative auctions and other fund-raising activities they come up with for Lily fans to help fulfill the missions of the North American Bear Center and the Wildlife Research Institute. We watch with gratitude as this team and all of you work toward those research and education goals. And what a difference it has made. We often think how far this group has come as people stepped forward, filled voids, formed teams, and provided structures to make Lily fans ever more effective in working for bears. There is so much talent and heart in this group.
Team Bear
Jill Wheaton Lindsey
Olatz Azcona Munarriz
Lis Rosenberg
Julie Houghton
Mary Patri Auldrich
Mary Verpia
Yvonne H. Thiede
Deb Kelly
Josephine O’Ryan
Carol Madorma Aldinger
Teresa Cox Fortney
Kerry Mahoney
Sue Gottscho
Becky Hollis
Suzie Saliga
Martha Deaver
Rhonda Hennis
Lori Collins Lindsay
Kathy (Redkat) Blake
Lynne Harland
Guin Heeler
Nancy Liu
Jan Cohen
One of the things we are relieved to see is that all is not lost for the Bear Tales book. Last spring, there were over a hundred stories in the file. Then disaster struck. The editor disappeared and, just as we had found a new editor, a miscommunication with a computer technician caused the files to be deleted. Now you have re-sent 72 of your stories and the new editor is poised to turn them into a book of simple everyday short stories that show what black bears are really like.
Thank you for all you are doing.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
by Lily the Black Bear on Thursday, 23 December 2010 at 03:29
Honey up again
No bear news except that Honey was up again. At 8 AM, she was in her den breathing about as slowly as one would expect—an even 3 breaths per minute. Later she was up checking for tidbits. We hope she loses a good amount over winter. Last winter she lost very little. The little bit she ate in her state of reduced metabolism was enough to keep her from losing a normal amount over winter. Her current weight of 446 pounds is heavier than any wild female that’s ever been part of our research.
Speaking about the research, a Lily fan discovered this article about our research in a 1992 issue of National Wildlife Magazine http://www.nwf.org/News-and-Magazines/National-Wildlife/Animals/Archives/1992/He-s-Just-One-of-the-Bears.aspx. The article includes Gerry, who Lynn says is the only bear that ever really liked him. It was nice to reminisce, but we’ve come a long way since then.
And we’ll come a good bit further when we learn what Lily and Hope have to show us this winter on the den cam.
A big thank you to Team Bear for the creative auctions and other fund-raising activities they come up with for Lily fans to help fulfill the missions of the North American Bear Center and the Wildlife Research Institute. We watch with gratitude as this team and all of you work toward those research and education goals. And what a difference it has made. We often think how far this group has come as people stepped forward, filled voids, formed teams, and provided structures to make Lily fans ever more effective in working for bears. There is so much talent and heart in this group.
Team Bear
Jill Wheaton Lindsey
Olatz Azcona Munarriz
Lis Rosenberg
Julie Houghton
Mary Patri Auldrich
Mary Verpia
Yvonne H. Thiede
Deb Kelly
Josephine O’Ryan
Carol Madorma Aldinger
Teresa Cox Fortney
Kerry Mahoney
Sue Gottscho
Becky Hollis
Suzie Saliga
Martha Deaver
Rhonda Hennis
Lori Collins Lindsay
Kathy (Redkat) Blake
Lynne Harland
Guin Heeler
Nancy Liu
Jan Cohen
One of the things we are relieved to see is that all is not lost for the Bear Tales book. Last spring, there were over a hundred stories in the file. Then disaster struck. The editor disappeared and, just as we had found a new editor, a miscommunication with a computer technician caused the files to be deleted. Now you have re-sent 72 of your stories and the new editor is poised to turn them into a book of simple everyday short stories that show what black bears are really like.
Thank you for all you are doing.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
Anne-Marie1981- Posts : 1089
Join date : 2010-05-17
Age : 43
Location : Northamptonshire
Re: Lily and Hope - The Black Bear and Cub
Anne-Marie1981 Thu Dec 23, 2010 11:15 am
I'm so very much looking forward to getting some Lily and Hope news! And for the den cam to be up and running :) I wonder if Lily will give birth.
Here are some clips from the wonderful documentary that will be airing early in the new year
Here are some clips from the wonderful documentary that will be airing early in the new year