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Teacher, mother, bear
From left to right, Dzantik'i Heeni Middle School students Derick Oliver, Matt Staley, Kit Cunningham, Kristen Bontragen use a VHF reciever to track a collared black bear near the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center in 2007. Students were rewarded for their efforts when the black bear, one of the oldest in the area, walked across the trail in front of the group.Like an elder who teaches lessons of significance, one local bear, who recently returned to her fishing grounds near the Mendenhall Glacier, has proved a teacher to not only her own kind, but also the humans who have had the privilege of interacting with her.
Those who know her best have come to call her by her Tlingit name Naa Tláa — meaning Clan Mother. Laurie Craig, lead naturalist at the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center, said it’s because this sow could very well be related to more than a few bears who call that area home.
She’s a small bear with fur that turns cinnamon-tinged when she’s shedding, like a youngster who’s spent too much time in the summer sun. During the rest of year, she’s a rich black, like the earth of the region she calls home. She has a small blue tag on her right ear, which — perhaps fittingly — bears the number one. Experts believe she is roughly 24 years old, based on tracking data received from collars and the wear on her teeth. Her home range is small, compared to some, and extends back into the wilderness near Nugget Creek. This past week she has been seen successfully catching fish, despite the fact many of her teeth are likely missing or broken. She has also been feasting on ground cones, another important food source for bears this time of year.
Last year, however, many thought she was dead, said Craig. She didn’t return to fish the banks or walk the trails she had for so many years.
It certainly wouldn’t be unusual for a bear to die at such a ripe age, said Neil Barten, Region 1 management coordinator for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. He said in all the years he’s studied black bears in and around Juneau, he’s seen few survive into their mid-20s; it is, however, possible.
Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center Juneau - News
Laurie Craig, lead naturalist at the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center, said it's because this sow could very well be related to more than a few bears who call that area home. She's a small bear with fur that turns cinnamon-tinged when she's shedding,
Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center Juneau - Bookshelf
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