Grinder and Coola Prepare for Winter

Grinder and Coola have begun to prepare for their 8th winter hibernation. As the days grow shorter and the temperatures fall lower, the bears are getting more sluggish and sleepy. Both bears have begun to sleep 14-16 hours a day and are spending their remaining hours building their den and making sure things are just right with their hibernation bed.

At the refuge we are also preparing for hibernation and are making sure our bear cameras are in working order. Everything is running well and posted below are a series of videos showing Grinder and Coola's preparations.

Staff have thrown in extra Pacific Silver-fir (Amabalis) branches for bedding material; the bears have shown a preference for this type of branch since the needles are dense and flat on the branch. The first video shows the bears pulling the branches in through the main door of their hibernation hotel:

After pulling the branches in, Grinder arranges them into their den chamber - he has to get each piece in the right spot!

Finally, Grinder inspects his handi-work:

All of this leads to a good nights sleep as we can see in this clip from 2 in the morning the following night!

The bears will continue these preparations over the next few days and will eat less and less food as the snow starts to fall. After our first good snow fall the boys will enter the den for the winter and officially be in hibernation.

Fall Arrives at Grouse Mountain

Temperatures have fallen to just above zero and we've seen our first snow fall. This means it's time to break out the winter jackets and gloves!

Grinder and Coola have fattened up and are spending more of their time sleeping in the woods. The other morning they slept in until after 10am before finally getting up to eat. Soon they will begin to build their winter bed inside the den by dragging in silver-fir branches.

The wolves have grown back their winter coats and have put on more weight to see them through the upcoming cold months. They can still be found, however, laying out it the fall sun, soaking it up and enjoying the last remnants of summer.

Most birds have migrated off the mountain for warmer climes, but some, like the Grey Jay, have arrived back on the mountain to spend the winter. Grey Jays, also known as Whiskey-jacks, spend their summers in the alpine and return to the sub-alpine environments when the snow begins to fall.

Babies Babies Everywhere

I love this time of year on top of Grouse Mountain as all of the young birds and mammals are venturing out from their nests and dens.

The cute little guy in the picture is one of the fledgling American Robins from a nest on our very own Wildlife Centre. Robins can have up to three clutches each year if conditions are favourable. At the moment we are seeing the second clutch of young birds leaving the nest. When they first leave the nest they are unable to fly but they quickly exercise their muscles and within a day or two they are lifting off. Young Robins will be independent from their parents at around 4 weeks of age.

In addition to birds, we are seeing lots of young mammals on the mountain. The Black-Tailed Deer are leading their fawns around, young Douglas Squirrels can be seen in the trees and even the occasional mother Black Bear and cub have been spotted.

With our berry bloom just about to happen, birds and mammals alike will be out in full force, chowing down on the scrumptious summer foods.

Bears and Wolves Enjoying Summer!

Well for the past few weeks it's really started to feel like summer up here at Grouse Mountain. All of the berry bushes are in bloom and fledgling birds can be seen all over the mountain making their first attempts at flight. Grinder, Coola and our three Timber Wolves have also been enjoying the warmer weather. For the wolves it means a chance to sun themselves out in their open fields, but we have also seen them playing in their pond - a great way to cool down! Speaking of cooling down, the bears have excavated the rest of the snow from their ponds and can be seen playing in them most afternoons. Coola especially likes the water and for the past few days has had a favourite stump that he has been playing with. He tosses it into the air, catches it and then bobs it under water and watches it fly up into the air. Grinder usually just prefers to wrestle! More updates to come soon.

Barn Swallows Return to Grouse Mountain

Every year, hundreds of Barn Swallows (Hirundo rustica) return to nest at Grouse Mountain. These sleek birds fly thousands of miles to and from their wintering grounds in Central and South America. They feed exclusively on flying insects - not even bothering to land to feed!

Their natural nesting sites include rocky projections and overhangs, but they have easily adapted to human constructed buildings. Now they quite readily nest under bridges and in the eaves of buildings. Try to spot some of their nesting sites the next time you are on the mountain. They have even been known to nest underneath our Super Skyride and every fifteen minutes the young birds ride up or down the mountain. Talk about a lot of work for the parent birds who must follow and feed them!

Grinder and Coola Emerge from Hibernation!

On Friday, April 25th, Grinder and Coola, our two resident orphaned Grizzly Bears, emerged from their seventh hibernation at the Grouse Mountain Refuge for Endangered Wildlife.

After checking to make sure everything was set in their outdoor hibernation habitat, we opened the door to their bear hotel. We left a small amount of snow covering the door to make it a more natural and exciting exit for the boys and they were quick to discover that they had a bit of work to do to get outdoors! The sounds of digging were heard moments after the door opened.

Grinder was the first to emerge. The first glimpse we saw was a snow-covered snout poking through the snow and this was quickly followed by a giant bear paw pushing and scratching at the snow to widen the opening. Once it was enlarged enough, Grinder pushed his way through and, happy to be outdoors, he proceeded to run around the habitat at full speed.

Coola, being the larger of the two, needed to widen the opening even further in order to get through. He continued to work on the hole as Grinder explored the habitat. However, Grinder, not being known for his patience, couldn't wait for Coola to come out and play. So, to help him out, Grinder went back and worked at the snow from the outside. Finally, almost ten minutes after Grinder emerged, Coola was outside and the romp was on!

The bears immediately went into a full on play wrestling session. Rolling, pushing, tackling, sliding, somersaulting, running and punching are just some of the activities that we observed as the two of them let off some pent up energy.

The bears, however, have just spent the last four months hibernating and are not as fit as they will be come summertime. Therefore, this big play session was quickly followed by a bear nap on top of one of the snow hills inside the habitat. Tuckered out, the bears slept for the remainder of the day.

The next step for us, as their caretakers, is to prepare their large five acre habitat. There is still a huge amount of snow to move around and lots of fencing to get ready. So for now, I'll sign off, and get to work digging!

Excavation of Bear Habitat Begins

Hello everyone! Grinder and Coola have been stirring in their den for the past couple of weeks and that means it is time to prepare their habitat for them. We have begun the process of excavating the 17 feet of snow that is surrounding the "Bear Hotel," where the bears spend their winter dormancy period. Mother Nature, however, has not been cooperating with our endevours as the snow continues to accumulate - even in April! We have received a few more feet of snow in the last two weeks alone.

When Grizzly Bears first emerge from hibernation they begin to feed on leafy plants and rooty vegetables. Their favourite is skunk cabbage! Here at Grouse Mountain we imitate this natural diet by providing Grinder and Coola a helping of lettuce and carrots each day. We have to be careful not too feed them too much too quickly as they have not had a meal since November. We introduce the food to their environment in small increments and this allows their metabolism to shift gears from hibernation to regular activity.

Watch for more details on their emergence soon!

Bears Stirring in Den

Hello everyone! It has been some time since my last post. Grinder and Coola have been sleeping well for the past months but are now showing signs of coming out of dormancy.

As the days grow longer and the temperatures warm up to above zero degrees Celcius, the activity level of the bears also increases. As I mentioned in an earlier blog, the bears are active all winter long to some degree. This motion and movement keeps their muscles and bones strong for when they emerge in the spring.

Their increased activity includes eating snow, digging in the snow and spending longer periods of time outside of the den. The digging and eating behaviors indicate that they are seeing if there is any food to be found under the snow. Eating snow is also one of the first steps in helping their metabolism "re-activate" for normal digestion.

Very soon now, most likely in the next few days, we will begin to feed the bears leafy vegetables such as romaine lettuce. In the wild an emerging bear's favourite foods are skunk cabbage leaves and grasses. The lettuce serves as a replicate for these spring time food sources. After a couple weeks of greens we will begin to introduce other foods, such as fruits and protein sources, back into their diet.

Be sure to watch here for more details as the end of hibernation approaches! I will provide regular updates.

Winter Wonderland continues at Grouse Mountain

It has been a while since my last update but things continue to go well for Grinder and Coola during their 2007/2008 hibernation period. As you can tell from the picture, the snow has almost succeeded in covering up the bear hotel!

We make sure, however, to keep important doorways and access routes clear and we check in daily to make sure the boys are doing ok. We watch them on a closed circuit camera within our monitoring area of the hibernation den and have observed normal behaviors for this time of year. They get up daily and move around as if in a sleep walk to re-adjust their bed or perhaps do a bit of grooming. This activity keeps their muscles and bones active and strengthened until the Spring.

Grizzly bears can lose more than one quarter of their body weight during hibernation. The fat layers they put on in the fall will sustain them throughout the wintertime. So be sure to watch for the slim and trim Grinder and Coola a couple of months from now!