Unlike the grizzly bears seen a week ago, black bears often come into town in the fall. It is there that black bears might find food to fatten up before they enter torpor. On this occasion, a sow and two cubs were not scrounging garbage, but feasting on walnuts.
One can often see them with their mouths open almost as if they were huffing at their watchers. They were were not huffing. While occasionally noticing the people drifting by, even those taking pictures, they were just chewing walnuts and spitting out the shells.
Chosen pictures often show their eyes as if they often would look our way. This is not the case for, while aware of people nearby, they seemed just largely to ignore watchers.
This is the mother bear munching. She is quite large, having fed extensively before torpor.
Here are the three of them. The two cubs are eating (one with a walnut in its mouth), while the mother watches.
A cub sits in the tree. Photo by Dorothy.
The sow and cub up the walnut tree and there to sleep for a while. Photo by Cynthia.
A cub is now descending the walnut tree.
The mother and one of the cubs. Both are chewing walnuts.
Great photos. Just had a bear spend the night in our cedar tree.
Great to see these well fed bears!
I don’t know much about bears. Do these older cubs hibernate with mom this winter?
Mary, these one-year old bears will hibernate with their mother this winter and then go off on their own. Well, bears don’t actually hibernate, but employ a somewhat lighter form called torpor. Larger animals employ torpor, while small animals employ hibernation.