|
|
Background to a Day with the Bears...
|
I was up and on the road shortly after 0600 hours. I was ready to go before this time, but the inn’s breakfast area didn’t open until then and I wanted a cup of coffee. After loading my gear, I used the time to warm up my vehicle, running outside the main entrance where I could keep an eye on it. It was two degrees when I left Bangor. Just over an hour later when I arrived at the Airline Snackbar I looked at the temperature – it read two degrees, a chilly morning and day was ahead. I was early to meet Linda so went into the store and had a terrific breakfast and talked to some of the locals. This worked out well because I needed to pull my boots off to get my outer layers on and by the time breakfast was done I was ready for the field – dressed in my warmest winter gear, cameras re-checked and packed – I was as ready as I was going to be… Loading and Preparations |
I followed Linda to the office where the crew was preparing to depart. It was my first meeting with Randy and the field crew. I’d heard much about Randy, one of the premier mammal biologists in Maine and instrumental in the bear studies being undertaken by MDIFW – he is also Linda’s husband - married biologists - one federal, one state. It would prove to be an interesting day. Randy said Linda or I should leave one of the vehicles here. I offered to drive – once I got away from my truck all my equipment was inaccessible, but I ended up riding with her. I didn’t realize we had a forty-five minute drive to where we’d load the snowmobiles for the field…
A Brief Summary About MDIFW and The Black Bear Monitoring Effort...
|
|
On a Personal Note:I would comment my visit to the bear den was one of the most illuminating experiences I’ve had in quite some time – equivalent to observing the rings of Saturn through a apochromatic telescope for the first time, or viewing an Arctic Tern chick through the lens at 400mm up close and personal… It was a privilege to be able to make this trip and I wish to make everyone aware of the outstanding work our state MDIFW personnel perform on a daily basis and what these tasks entail…Kiro and Black Bear Cub - Somewhere in the Downeast Study Area, Maine...Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III, 1/250 second at f/14, EF 24~105 f/4L at 92mm, ISO 400 with flashPhotograph by Linda Welch |
Meeting the Bear Crew...
Randy supervises the bear field crews and assists in analyzing the data collected from the three active study areas in the state. He is an expert in interpretation of
ageing predicated upon teeth in moose and deer besides bears, and active with bear management activities. I was duly impressed with so many things I observed Randy
and crew doing during the day - it would be a long list if documented here. However, if I ever were in the woods and in any type of danger, given a choice I’d
select Randy or either of his crew members as my companions…
Randy Cross, MDIFW Wildlife Biologist & Bear Crew SupervisorCanon EOS 1Ds Mark III, 1/250 second at f/18, EF 24~105 f/4L at 105mm, ISO 400 with flash |
|
Matt O'Neal and Lisa Bates...
|
Linda Welch and Ashley Malinowski...
|
Companions for the Day...
|
|
|
Randy asked if I were okay riding a snowmobile solo. I answered sure, but thought to myself it’s been thirty-years since I’d been on one. The first ten miles or so was on the Stud Mill Road, a bit of a misnomer I thought once I saw it – a snow track bordering some power lines. Linda indicated that some years this is kept plowed, but not this winter. Everybody viewed this road like a superhighway for snowmobiles – this was the easy part - just get on it and go. Linda told me not to be concerned, she’d talked to Randy and he was going to 'take it easy' on the way out. I was second in line behind Randy and we traveled the real plowed road, banked hard left over the snow mound and onto the trail. I got over the hump and got on the throttle a bit. I went along for a minute or so, but when I looked up Randy was nowhere to be seen. I knew I saw him come this way, wondered if I missed a turn and got over to check with Lisa and Matt behind me. They signaled to keep going so I did. The visibility ahead was excellent – one can see quite far as exhibited by the upcoming photographs. I couldn’t believe Randy could travel that much distance in so short a span, enough to get out of sight – but he did… Randy & Linda - Ready to Ride... |
View on Stud Mill Road
|
This part of the journey was to cover ground to make the approach to the bear den. I can’t say I was comfortable as the front end of the snowmobile bucked and jerked
along. I kept the throttle wide open for most of the period but my machine was obviously slower than the others. I was okay with this but didn’t want to hold anyone up
any more than I could avoid. I did okay on this part I believe. When we turned off Stud Mill Road, Randy stopped so we could converse for a moment. He indicated the next segmant was a bit more
challenging but still a road of sorts, after that it would be breaking trail through the woods. I went slow and was doing okay until we got into the woods area. I dumped
the snowmobile twice – it was embarrassing and presented a feeling of hopelessness because once I tried to stand the snow was deeper than my legs and moving about was
significantly problematic. Thankfully, Matt coming up behind, righted my machine and offered his hand to pull me back aboard. Thanks Matt! It was still a long way to spring when
I would have extricated myself from this dilemma… I wasn’t worried about getting hurt, however, I had a real concern with my camera, which followed me into the snow first
as I fell over to my left. It’s a good thing Canon’s claims that the weather sealing was excellent on the Mark III bodies proved to be true because mine had two deep
submergences in the snow. I also considered that if some mishap occurred – breaking the lens mount off for example, I would have been done for the day. My back-up cameras
were many miles away by now…
View on the Snow TrackCanon EOS 1Ds Mark III, 1/250 second at f/13, EF 70~200 f/2.8L at 105mm, ISO 500 |
|
|
We arrived at the search area where the snowmobiles where to be left behind - it was on foot from here. The equipment and snowshoes were unloaded from the sleds and the crew packed the gear for the trek in. Lisa pulled the receiving gear out, set it up and started a search for the signal and the den. They had an idea where it was but actually finding it presented a challenge. The female bear wore a collar mounted transmitter and the crew was searching for her signal. Thanks to Linda’s able assistance I got the snowshoes on she’d brought along for my use and soon they were strapped tightly over my boots. Randy offered a few words of advice and soon all were trekking through the woods as the crew searched for the den. Lisa Searching for the Signal...Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III, 1/800 second at f/6.3, EF 70~200 f/2.8L at 200mm, ISO 400 |
|
Onward to the Den...
|
The crew gathered around and planned a strategy to locate the bears. The discussion appeared to center around the fact the den wasn’t where they anticipated locating it from
the aerial review conducted recently. Upon observing how things were being done, before departing I mounted my 24~105 f/4L zoom and flash on my camera, re-packed the
70~200 zoom and left the bag on the snowmobile. I was traveling as light as possible with one system and nothing spare to the den. Nobody was certain how far we’d have
to snowshoe, not that the distance mattered much. Afterwards Lisa, Matt and Ashley, freighted with equipment for use at the den, went ahead followed by Randy and Linda with me following in the
rear. Linda hung back enough to make certain I didn’t roll off into the snow somewhere and although I was considerably slower than the group, was making progress. She gave
me some retractable poles and they were helpful until we got into the thicker shrubbery where I carried them out of the way. Although tiring, I really could understand the
benefit of snowshoeing into the pristine forest – it was truly beautiful. And I only broke through the snow cover once - after wallowing around for a few minutes, Linda, always gracious, lent me a hand to get upright and we continued
on our way…
Looking into the Pristine Forest...Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III, 1/640 second at f/16, EF 24~105 f/2.8L at 24mm, ISO 400 |
|
|
Linda came back indicating we should stay where we were for a time. They’d located the den, probing the snow to reveal the mother, and Randy was going to inject the female bear – as you can imagine with some risk, before we moved closer to the den. I gathered generally we’d be further away during this procedure but due to the extra time required to locate the spot in this confined area we were closer, but still at a safe distance. They waited about twenty-minutes after the injection to make certain the mother bear was sedated adequately before the next step. All I can say at this point is that the next hour or so was absolutely remarkable… The trek in was somewhat tiring (for me anyway – my compatriots were jogging around in a somewhat gleeful state) as I tried to keep from stepping on the rear snowshoe with the front and vice-versa to keep moving. When they started pulling cubs from the den all that changed… Any thought of being tired, cold or whatever evaporated instantly. This was perhaps the most extraordinary event it’s been my pleasure to witness… Randy and Matt Sedating the Female Bear...Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III, 1/400 second at f/22, EF 24~105 f/2.8L at 58mm, ISO 400 with flash |
Documenting and Opening the Den...
|
Black Bears! Momma and Four Cubs...
Randy asked if I wanted to take a photograph into the den. Certainly I wanted to do this but it required getting low to be able to look in. I managed to get this done, remember we all
had snowshoes on still, but it was so bright outside, looking into the den proved darker than the inside of a cow – total and complete blackness… I tried to use my flash to illuminate
the scene but couldn’t obtain a focus lock in the abyss. Linda came to my assistance once again and held a flashlight while I turned the camera's focusing ring and took a few shots. The view at right is the
end result. What you’re seeing is Momma Bear lying down; the cubs are further back and not in view…
Looking into the Den...Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III, 1/60 second at f/7.1, EF 24~105 f/2.8L at 88mm, ISO 400 with flash |
|
|
Bringing out the Cubs...
|
Matt started passing the cubs out from the den. The poor little bears had been taken from total darkness to bright sunlight and at first they were disorientated. Randy indicated these cubs had been born in January and would stay with their mother in the den through one more winter. I learned the male bears have nothing to do with raising the cubs and actually represent a danger to the little ones should they locate the den… I was mesmerized as I photographed the scene… Matt Removing the Bear Cubs...Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III, 1/250 second at f/18, EF 24~105 f/2.8L at 105mm, ISO 400 with flash |
Its Been Said a Picture is Worth a Thousand Words - I Think the following Images are in this Category...
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
There were two male and two female cubs in this den and they were just as cute as could be… Linda put them in her jacket and they were content napping in the warmth. Everyone took a turn holding them as we all photographed
the scene while the cubs were being weighed. Two cubs, a male and female, had ear bands installed. It was an amazing time… I was thinking that this is why I’m here and I did everything possible to photograph
everything underway for Randy's files… Linda
had told me what this was like but I realized one has to experience the event – a description simply does not suffice…
Linda and Cub...Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III, 1/250 second at f/16, EF 24~105 f/2.8L at 85mm, ISO 400 with flash |
|
Views Around the Den...
|
The Bear Crew at Work...
|
|
|
Matt and Lisa worked through the den opening to tie lines on the legs of the female bear. Once everything was properly secured she was extracted through the hole in the snow. This was quite interesting – not that I ever gave a great deal of thought in my normal work life about how I’d go about pulling a bear out of a den, but seeing it done and how they went about it was intriguing. They commented this was a large female and Randy estimated she weighed in at 192 pounds. Later, when she was hoisted up on their portable scale this was determined as her exact weight… Matt & Lisa Removing the Female Bear...Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III, 1/250 second at f/22, EF 24~105 f/2.8L at 35mm, ISO 400 with flash |
|
|
With the cubs tucked warmly in coats amongst our group and napping, the bear crew ran their tests and measurements on the mother bear. Randy conducted a careful inspection on the bear’s teeth and overall state of health. He
indicated this was a thirteen year old female. He also mentioned this bear had lost her cubs last year and was pleased to see she had four in this new season.
Randy Examining the Female Bear...Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III, 1/250 second at f/20, EF 24~105 f/2.8L at 105mm, ISO 400 with flash |
|
|
Examination and Data Collection - Working with the Mother Bear...
|
|
Due to the nature of this trip most of the discussion took place at short stops on the snowmobiles, or centered on Randy’s direction about how to go about the tasks at hand. He and I spoke little over the course of the day simply because we were always in motion. I think he knew Linda would be keeping me straight if I had a problem in any event. However, he always found time to offer me advice at what I thought were opportune times – almost like he knew what I was thinking about... For example, when struggling on snowshoes he’d pop over and offer a tip about what to do to make things easier – once he expressed surprise that the straps didn’t come lose during the trek in – yikes I thought – this would be a pain – I doubt I could have gotten them back on without assistance; he provided multiple snowmobile tips about what to be concerned and not concerned about; he cautioned me to be careful about getting overheated and starting to sweat from the snowshoe exertion – a sure-fired way to get dangerously cold later – the temperature really hadn’t warmed much since we left in the morning. Unzip, unbutton, take your hat off – whatever it took to prevent overheating; when he inspected the bears he talked to all of us about what he observed, answering many questions I had before they could be vocalized. Seeing the bear crew performing their daily tasks certainly made a positive impression on me with their professionalism and conscientious work habits… Photographically my task was to document the bear crew going about their daily routine – the type of images that prove important for record and use in public outreach efforts. Although shooting from a confined area with little opportunity to move around when taking exposures and wearing snowshoes the entire session, I felt satisfied that this had been accomplished up to this point. However, it wasn’t all work for the crew… Once the documentation tasks were completed everyone took a few minutes to pose with the bears… Randy, the Patch & Cub...Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III, 1/250 second at f/16, EF 24~105 f/2.8L at 65mm, ISO 400 with flash |
The Bear Chronicles...
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Soon enough it was time to think about stashing the cubs and mother back in den. As the crew made preparations to repack the gear for the trek back to the
snowmobiles, they placed the cubs on mom, still prone on the snow. They were just as happy as could be and snuggled right in. Linda mentioned that female bears
will sometimes make ground nests – similar to a bird's, where she’ll lie out with her cubs and hibernate while the snow covers them over the winter… I also learned
that when bears hibernate they are more or less in a semi-conscious state and aware of their surroundings. For example if one were walking around the den they would
know you were there, or if the cubs had a problem mom would awake enough to take care of it before they all returned to sleep. I asked Randy how they went about
placing the bears back in the den. He indicated this was the easy part – gravity makes it simple to slide the mother back through the hole – then the cubs are
tossed in and they close up the opening with brush and snow cover. They’re good to go for the balance of the winter and no worse for the experience… I’ll post the
final bear photo template before we departed the den area below.
Black Bear Cub...Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III, 1/250 second at f/10, EF 24~105 f/2.8L at 105mm, ISO 400 with flash |
|
Final Views of the Bear Family...
|
|
Everything was packed and the crew started the hike back to the snowmobiles. As I looked ahead I could see Lisa, Matt and Ashley running along on their snowshoes. At one point when they stopped for a time – probably to let me catch up, Lisa asked how I was doing – fine I replied, but some younger legs would be nice… But I was a happy guy. I was energized after spending time with the bears but would comment it appeared to be a longer trek returning than it did on the way in… I asked Matt if it were like this every day – pretty much he stated, except they normally visit five or six dens a day. Soon enough everyone was out of sight except Linda. She was in front of me and in view, going at my pace in lieu of leaving me too far behind. A minute later I heard a snowmobile fire up – a pleasing sound as it indicated we were nearing the end of the snowshoe phase… The crew had turned the snowmobiles around facing the outward trail in preparation of departure… Outward Bound...Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III, 1/640 second at f/18, EF 24~105 f/2.8L at 24mm, ISO 400 |
Once back to the snowmobiles Randy declared it was time for lunch. This was an unusual day for them – with me along photographing the proceedings they weren’t working
anywhere near their normal
pace. I was clueless about the time having left my cell phone and watch in my vehicle. Looking at the metadata for the exposure at right, it was now 1:21 PM. I wasn’t especially
hungry although I had some trail mix in my camera bag, but thirst was a different issue and I got into the bottles of water I'd carried along. It was a spectacular day – probably one of
the colder in recent weeks, but I believe this helped the pristine scene I was observing. The sun was bright and the sky was a deep blue. I was the last one to take off my
snowshoes because I knew what was going to happen if I took them off and tried to move anywhere… Eventually I did remove them, but used them to stand on when moving around to obtain a few shots.
The Bear Crew - Lunch Time in the Woods...Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III, 1/500 second at f/13, EF 24~105 f/2.8L at 50mm, ISO 400 |
|
|
Lunchtime Exposures...
|
|
After talking with Randy he decided to make changes to the snowmobile order. I was to ride as a passenger with Lisa. I was good with this concept because it would make the next leg of the journey quicker. We left and soon were beyond the recently broken trail through the woods, then through the secondary road and onto Stud Mill Road. Randy indicated we would ride west on the Stud Mill Road as far as an entrance road to Fifth Machias Lake. Randy and Linda had a camp on this lake and we were going to stop to have a look. The snow was three or four feet deep around the camp as we navigated a path to the camp entrance to look around. It was really neat. Randy told me this was his idea of heaven… There are four or five camps on the lake and I was informed there won’t be any added because the State of Maine owns the land around it now and no further construction would be sanctioned. In warmer weather they have a beach that Linda said had exquisite sunsets. I could see that if you wanted to ‘get away from it all’, this was the right spot. They looked at many locations before purchasing this particular home. As Lisa and I zipped along on the snowmobile she suddenly pulled over and asked if I’d noticed the tracks we just past. I said no, but in truth, as soon as we left my helmet visor fogged up completely and all I could see at the time was a blue blur representing her jacket until it cleared. I’d placed my camera in front of me and was enjoying the ride. We went back and I received a lesson about the tracks. Soon, Randy joined us as he was checking on what caused our delay, and they discussed the find. Lisa said the tracks represented an adult and two kittens. She stated Lynx supposedly weren’t in this area and was excited by this evidence that they were… Lynx Tracks in the Snow...Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III, 1/1000 second at f/16, EF 24~105 f/2.8L at 90mm, ISO 400 |
The Bear Crew on Fifth Machias Lake...
|
|
|
Lisa came by and picked me up from my snow trapped confinement. She was close enough that I was able to pull myself onto the sled and into the passenger seat. When our group left the lake we followed the trail Randy had
opened back to Stud Mill Road. It was time for Linda and me to head back to her vehicle. Randy and the crew were going to another bear den, which he estimated would take them about
five hours. We could have gone along if
we choose to do so, and although Randy didn’t say anything, his estimate probably would have escalated to seven hours with me along. In truth, I was good, felt pleased with the image group
and had many hours of travel ahead before getting home. Without equivocation
I can state it had been an outstanding day.
Randy looked toward me pointing at a snowmobile and said I was driving Linda back on that machine. Just go straight for ten miles and turn right at the road – you can’t miss it. Okay I thought – I actually looked forward to the heated grips to warm up my right hand. We had a few sketchy moments on the return but it was uneventful for the most part. I kept the machine steady at thirty miles per hour – probably half speed or less, and stayed in the track for most of it. The wind had been blowing strongly and in places where it was obscured, Linda pointed out the best way to proceed. We actually broke new trail from time to time but I did my best to avoid this. Unlike the machine I rode out on, this one was powerful and nasty. I enjoyed the return trip most of the time but the ten miles appeared to go on endlessly before we finally encountered a real road… Ashley on the Lake - T 36 MD, Maine...Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III, 1/400 second at f/16, EF 24~105 f/2.8L at 105mm, ISO 400 |
|
|
Linda and I dropped off the snowmobile, removed our belongings and loaded up her vehicle. In a matter of minutes we were heading back towards the rendezvous point and my truck. I thanked her profusely for the opportunity to spend the day with her, the MDIFW crew and Ashley – it had been a wonderful experience. I also indicated I’d have the image group evaluated, enhanced and a print group produced before the weekend was over – and I did… Stud Mill Road Looking West - the Return...Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III, 1/800 second at f/14, EF 24~105 f/2.8L at 90mm, ISO 400 |
|
I dedicate this humble effort to Linda Welch and Randy Cross - Biologists’ Extraordinaire; Matt O’Neal and Lisa Bates, my MDIFW companions, and Ashley Malinowski – snow devils all…
|
|
Kiro
March 2011
March 2011