by Sylvia Dolson, Whistler Question, March 13, 2008Check out www.bearsmart.com/dencam.html and watch a bear named Rascal as he sleeps in his den in real time.
Rascal is a young cinnamon coloured black bear that was first found orphaned by Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) in 2006. Wildlife officials are unsure as to what happened to his mother - she might have been killed in a vehicle accident or shot by a hunter. Rascal was taken to a wildlife rehabilitation centre in Helena, where he spent his first winter, got fattened up and was released in the spring of 2007. According to Patti Sowka, the rehabber, Rascal was actually very blonde when he was first brought to the centre. “He was very weary of people and was a very good release candidate. But after months of dry weather and dwindling food resources, he eventually found residential garbage – in fact, he was quite a distance from the release location”, said Sowka. In December, calls starting coming in to FWP about a young bear that hadn’t yet denned. Officials investigated and sure enough it was Rascal. He was captured again, weighing only about 75 lbs. This time Rascal was placed into an artificial den site in the Swan Valley of north western Montana. He seems to be quite content in his new home.Rascal quickly settled in for his long winter sleep after having a little peek around. He will likely lose about 30% of his body weight during denning, since he will not be eating or drinking while hibernating. During the denning period, a bear’s heart rate and other body functions slow down to conserve energy when food is scarce in the winter. The project was financed privately by the landowner, who has several other cams on his property, so that he can enjoy the critters on his ranch while back East.Ryan Alter, of Alter Enterprises, constructed the artificial den and equipped it with the den cam. It is made of wood planks and insulated with wood chips, a bed of straw, plastic tarps and pine boughs. It has one exterior camera and three interior cameras allowing us all to have a peek inside a bear’s den.Rascal just turned two in January, 2008.Sylvia Dolson is the executive director of the Whistler-based Get Bear Smart Society.
