‘Bold’ and underweight black bear family finds new home at wildlife center

Here’s another reason to heed all those signs that say “don’t feed the wildlife:” Three black bear cubs were nearly orphaned because of their mom’s pesky behavior around humans.

Breathe a sigh of relief, though, because all were taken in by the Wildlife Science Center in Stacy, Minn., about 40 minutes north of Minneapolis and also home to Ethel the black bear.

At 138 pounds, about half of what she should weigh, the sow on the northeast Minnesota Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa reservation was probably too small to hold her own territory, said center co-founder and executive director Peggy Callahan.

“In the Superior National Forest, it’s tough living out there,” she said. “All it would take is a slightly bigger sow” to chase her off her territory.

A wildlife biologist on the reservation tried to move her several times, but she “had a high tolerance for human proximity,” Callahan said, because she was fed by them.

“When you’re marinating them in human contact, you’re creating an animal that’s not going to be OK in the wild, and that’s true whether it’s a deer, bear or wolf,” she said. “People are so naive about the negative impact of feeding these guys.”

Had the center not had room for the entire family, the mother would have been euthanized and the underweight cubs might not have survived.

Relocation to another part of a forest doesn’t always work, Callahan said, if another bear has the territory staked. It’s also hard on the bears.

The cubs are about six months old and still need milk from their mother, who was extremely protective of her babies despite her weakened state, Callahan said. Her milk had dried up but has since returned in the few weeks they’ve been living at the center. All are now getting a regular diet of berries and veggies, foliage, fish and carrion, and have put on some weight.

The cubs’ comfort with people means they aren’t afraid of the visitors the center receives.

“They come running right up to the fence,” Callahan said. “Their boldness was a problem in the wild, but it’s a good thing for educational purposes.”

Grand Portage residents are deciding on Ojibwe names for the bears.

They will live permanently at the nonprofit Wildlife Science Center, as all its residents do — many of which arrive because their mother was killed. It’s home to owls, foxes, a mountain lion, bobcats and coyotes, and has the largest population of captive wolves in the country, said Callahan, who started the center primarily to research and offer education about wild-born wolves. More than 80 live in enclosures inside the 210-acre property.

Ten wolf pups came to the center last summer after their mother was shot and killed by a man who then tried to sell the pups. He was turned in, Callahan said.

“They all pulled through,” Callahan said, “and they certainly are great ambassadors.”

Black bears have been in the news in recent weeks, with an attack in western Wisconsin and a young cub roaming in southwestern Minnesota.

If you encounter one of these typically shy and passive animals, first move slowly away and, if necessary, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources says, make loud noises and try to appear large. They will usually run away.