Thoughts on deer hunting: Part I

As most of my readers know, I am still an undergraduate college student studying Wildlife Management at SUNY Cobleskill (but my semester JUST ended, and I only have 1 left!). I’ve always been an outdoorsy kid, and loved animals, and gotten dirty, and been interested in macro level biology. Since I started college back up in 2010 at Finger Lakes Community College, I’ve been inundated by hunters, trappers, fisher(wo)men, rednecks, hippies, tree-huggers, animal-lovers, scientists, nerds (you name it!) as my classmates, friends, and professors. These are labels, sometimes fair and sometimes not, used to describe people in my “field” of work and study.

My first time shooting a firearm: Remington 870, 

at a moving target during my USFWS orientation in Alaska.

What do I identify with?

I’m a young woman who has never hunted, brought up almost in an anti-hunting home, fished when made to, had every pet imaginable, went camping every summer, never wore shoes in the summer… I’m not a “hippie”, I’m not a “redneck”, I’m kind of a blend I think.

This entry isn’t meant to be about labels and categorizing those I learn, work, and play with… but lately I’ve been thinking about “who” I am in this field. Initially, the thought of working with wildlife sounded AWESOME because who doesn’t want to hold a bear cub?

Holding a black bear cub at a 

DEC-chaperoned den visit. 

Almond, NY (March 2013). 

Photo credit: Alicia Walker

That was a dream come true earlier this year. Who doesn’t want to work outdoors (well, only if the weather is fair) and see beautiful landscapes, smell pine-scented air, and get a tan? I’ve learned since beginning my studies, that these things don’t always occur. And sometimes you’re picking up deer poop and putting it into hundreds of vials in a freezing rain storm, so that the DNA can be examined. And sometimes after a particularly fun night out, you have to stand on a boat the whole next day tracking fish. And sometimes, you have to learn how to “sex” geese, and they bite you in rude places and poop in your face!

It ain’t all glamorous and photo-worthy, but I really do enjoy living and working in this field of wildlife management and conservation.

So back to hunting: I am in the Wildlife Management degree program, and I’m interning at the DEC within the Game Management Unit. We talk A LOT about hunting for deer, turkey, bear, ducks, geese, rabbits, squirrels, grouse, you name it. My friends disappear into the woods around mid-November, and reappear mid-December bearded, and happy because their freezers are full of wild game. Hunting is not just a hobby or sport, it’s a way to actively participate in wildlife management, and to provide good, wholesome protein to your family.

I’ve also been very queasy about blood and gore. Maybe that’s why I always put hunting out of my mind as a hobby to get into. The thought of watching an animal die, almost literally feels like heartache. But, I must stop myself, and stop allowing myself to consider every animal to be my pet bunny, kitty, or puppy. These are wild animals, that live rough lives of hunger, sometimes starvation, sickness, competition, and fear. Our species is spreading to every reach of this planet, and in turn are displacing whatever wild being lived there first, which we now refer to as a “nuisance”. We have removed all apex predators from the northeast. Long gone are mountain lions and wolves. So, who controls the deer herd now?

Did you know that if you purchase a NYS fishing or hunting license, firearms, ammo, hunting gear, etc…a portion of that (called the Pittman–Robertson Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act (11% tax)), comes back to the state which helps provide resources to the state for wildlife management efforts? In a way, hunters are paying the salaries of those of us tasked with making decisions about wildlife. As a state, we “own” our wildlife, which goes back to how land was ruled and governed in our Mother Land, England. What’s on this land, is ours! Which is ironic, because early colonists left and revolted against England to get away from that way of thinking, yet here we are hundreds of years later, still “owning” the wildlife.


I read Aldo Leopold’s “A Sand County Almanac” as a freshman at FLCC. Leopold introduced new ways of thinking about the land and it’s resources, including wildlife. All of these things aren’t here for us to just kill, mine, burn, cut, harvest, and eat at will. We must define our personal land ethic, and strive to CONSERVE and PRESERVE, or there will not be any wild anything left for our children. Leopold wrote of a wolf hunt trip he was on (to eradicate all large predators):

“We reached the old wolf in time to watch a fierce green fire dying in her eyes. I realized then, and have known ever since, that there was something new to me in those eyes – something known only to her and to the mountain. I was young then, and full of trigger-itch; I thought that because fewer wolves meant more deer, that no wolves would mean hunters’ paradise. But after seeing the green fire die, I sensed that neither the wolf nor the mountain agreed with such a view.” 

This is a very emotional passage for me. Could I watch an animal die? Could I be responsible for the death of another living being? I may be criticized for being too sensitive or emotional, OR criticized for even considering hunting at all. The fact is, human beings are omnivorous beings, created by whomever with teeth and dietary needs for protein best derived from animal flesh. If I hunt, it won’t be for a huge buck. It will be for meat, and so that I can participate in the circle of life. Hamburger doesn’t come from Price Chopper or Wegmans or Hannafords. It comes from an animal, likely who had lived a not-so-pleasant life, unless I splurge and by free-range, grass-fed beef/chicken/pork. But, I’m a college student. If I buy a steak, it’s the cheapest cut. I rarely eat red meat (unless it’s venison given to me by a hunter-friend!) because it’s so expensive. I respect your choice to be vegetarian or vegan, please respect mine to eat and ENJOY meat, and to want to understand the whole process of harvest.

Coming up, a review of deer hunting this past bow and regular season! I have great picture submissions from around New York State.

A Visit to "The Shack"

When I first graduated from high school, I had no idea what I was doing with my life. I started a Bachelors of Arts communications degree program at a very small, private college in the Finger Lakes, and I was not successful. Although I completed about 75% of that degree (barely), I left before I started my senior year. I just wasn’t in the right place, and was wasting time and money. After several years of hopping around from job to job, all horrible, yet another blow came: my laptop died- the “blue screen of death”. I had no money, was living at my parents, I was 24, and pretty miserable with my life. Friends were getting degrees, getting married, buying homes, having children, and I was not doing any of those things. Luckily, for me, my mom devised a bribe. She’d buy me a new computer, but I had to enroll in at least one class, somewhere. So, I spent some time looking online at local community colleges, and what appeared to be “fun”. At the time, I was working full time at a very large retail store, and if I was going to take a class, it couldn’t be boring. On the Finger Lakes Community College website, I came across a class called “Introduction to Environmental Conservation: CON 100″ which totally seemed interesting and fun! I enrolled, and began taking night classes a few weeks later.

When I walked in that first night, I was nervous. I had repeatedly felt stupid with my last go around of college, not because I was, but because I hadn’t been invested. But at the time of starting this new class at FLCC, I was nervous I wouldn’t be able to keep up, or other students would be way smarter, or whatever. I had a million scary thoughts. I met the professor, sat through the first lecture, and was hooked. Not only was the content fascinating to me, because I have always loved the outdoors, camping, hiking, wildlife, etc, but the other students were just like me. A variety of ages, backgrounds, and interest levels. Of course there were those who were disconnected, uninterested, rarely came to class- and I commiserated with them. Then on the other end, there were moms and dads who were coming back to school after years or decades of being out. I was right in the middle of those extremes, and I felt so welcomed. But the piece of this that has really been the driving force for me, and almost 4 years later still is, is that professor of CON 100. I won’t make this entry a fan club submission, it’s just that this field trip to “The Shack” cannot be discussed without the inclusion of John.

A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold.
Image courtesy of www.amazon.com

John introduced Aldo Leopold to me.

In CON 100, we had to read excerpts from A Sand County Almanac, which is a collection of essays written by Leopold. Leopold is considered the father of wildlife management, and his views changed our country’s ways of conservation and dealing with wild animals. He participated in predator eradication as a young man. He was commissioned to shoot wolves, for example. Less predators= more game, right? Through time, Leopold realized that what we were doing, was not increasing prey species (like deer), but totally disrupting ecosystems. He developed a “land ethic” that gave us ideas about conservation of natural resources (“wise use”), and preservation (no use). This man was also an incredibly talented writer, who meticulously documented everything he observed. Some of these writings were eventually turned into a collection of essays which is now A Sand County Almanac. I would wager that all environmentally-focused students are required to read at least sections of this book. We must, as wildlife managers, stewards, biologists, enthusiasts, understand how it all came to be.

A few weeks ago, I attended the 20th National Wildlife Society Conference that was held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Although Leopold did not personally found TWS, his actions and movements, along with others, inspired the need for a professional organization of like-minded scientists. Leopold also lived and worked much of his life in Wisconsin, not far from Milwaukee. In fact, the area where he wrote A Sand County Almanac, which is fairly “famous” among us wildlife and conservation folk, was only about a 2 hour drive from Milwaukee. And the final cool piece of this trip is that John also attended, and we got to take a field trip with other conference-goers to Aldo Leopold’s summer and weekend abode, or The Shack.

The day after the official conference ended, was when we found ourselves on a Coach bus headed to Baraboo, Wisconsin. Leopold was the United State’s first professor of Wildlife Management at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. This is interesting to me, since most of my classes are taught by his academic descendants and disciples, and he even wrote the first wildlife management text book. When he wasn’t teaching and working in the city, he wanted a place to escape to, as I’m sure we all do. He bought about 80 acres of agricultural land out in the country along the Wisconsin River. It even had a standing structure on it, which has been termed The Shack. This Shack was actually a tiny chicken coop that he moved his family of a wife, 5 children, and various pets into on weekends and whenever he wasn’t teaching.

There are features around the Shack and on the property that I’ve read many passages about, and the most influential piece was entitled “A Good Oak”. I’ll try to explain what that meant for me, and why I’ve remembered it. A Good Oak begins with a description of Leopold warming by the fire on a cold, winter day. He begins to asks the reader to consider the following:

“There are two spiritual dangers in not owning a farm. One is the danger of supposing that breakfast comes from the grocery, and the other that heat comes from a furnace.”

A glimpse of The Shack across the meadow, with a white oak framing the picture.

I do not consider myself particularly high maintenance or naive, but I definitely did not not grow up planting and weeding a garden, or heading out to hunt to fill the freezer, or even sewing. My family had a small hobby garden for end of the summer tomatoes, rhubarb, sweet corn, and pumpkins. I fished for “fun”. I learned to sew because I was in 4-H and I think that’s somehow one of the H’s. My mom went to Wegmans every Saturday, we went back to school shopping, and while we did have a woodstove, I was rarely part of the fuel collecting. My dad would call a guy, he’d dump already-chopped wood in a huge pile in the driveway, and sometimes my sister and I would be forced to help stack it and fill the rack in the garage. I was an outdoorsy kid though, I liked camping and the idea of “living off the land”. I just was born into the 20th century in a 1st world country, so I didn’t HAVE to live off the land.

Leopold reminisces with us about that Good Oak. With each pass of the saw through the growth rings, he speaks of what happened in the world that year.

The saw that cut the Good Oak.

“Now our saw bites into the 1890′s, called gay by those whose eyes turn cityward rather than landward. We cut 1899, when the last passenger pigeon collided with a charge of shot near Babcock, two counties to the north; we cut 1898 when a dry fall, followed by a snowless winter, froze the soil even feet deep and killed the apple trees; 1897, another drought year, when another forestry commission came into being; 1896, when 25,000 prairie chickens were shipped to market from the village of Spooner along; 1895, another year of fires; 1894, another drought year; and 1893, the year of The Bluebird Storm,‟when a March blizzard reduced the migrating bluebirds to near -zero.(The first bluebirds always alighted in this oak, but in the middle, nineties it must have gone without.)”

Of course I brought my copy of A Sand County Almanac with me to visit The Shack. And I also had the pleasure of eating an apple from a tree Leopold himself planted.

The Good Oak is of course long gone, but perhaps relatives of that oak are sprouted around the property. There was a large group of us visiting the Shack that day, so while some were actually inside the building, others of us wandered the grounds. I stopped to collect a few leaves and acorns for my journal that I try to keep when I travel. The acorns, perhaps, I’ll get to plant some day, when I own my own slice of land.

It was a terrific trip for me, a budding biologist, to take with her friend and mentor. Back in CON 100, John imparted the words of Leopold to me, and gave me a solid appreciation for the man who “paved the way”, and for delving into a hard read. If you haven’t read Sand County, please do, but realize that Aldo Leopold was a BRILLIANT man who had certainly had a way with words. The passion in which John read us excerpts in class, and they way he explained what it meant to him, has stuck with me these past 3 years. I’m now in my senior year at SUNY Cobleskill, and about to hit the ground running in May. I am glad to have Aldo Leopold’s book in my back pocket, should I need a “reality check”. John has his own blog entry, The Shack, where he details our trip in his own words. Please click over to see!

The Shack is also on the National Register of Historic Places, which gives it federal protection. Check out this document (Aldo Leopold Farm and Shack) for some great pictures of the property and shack from recent times, and while it was in use by the Leopold Family. If you ever find yourself in Central Wisconsin, make a point to stop at the Shack. There is also the Aldo Leopold Foundation visitor center just down the road, which has great information about stewardship, living green, and history of the family.

Thanks for sticking in for a long entry, this was a really fun entry for me to write!




Myself in front of Aldo Leopoldo’s Shack.



Aldo Leopold shown in front of his shack in ~1940. Photo borrowed from: UW Digital Archives

#tws2013

http://wildlifesociety.org/

Here I go again! I'm sitting in the Albany International Airport awaiting my flight to Chicago then to Milwaukee! I'm attending the 2013 National Wildlife Society Conference in Wisconsin this coming week. I've been looking forward to attending this conference for months, especially since I found out in June that I had been accepted to present a poster on black bear work I have been involved with for the past 3 years. I consider myself quite fortunate to have been connected with people at Finger Lakes Community College and also who are facilitating the National Science Foundation grant that FLCC administrates: the Community College Undergraduate Research Inititative.

I came into FLCC just as the CCURI grant was awarded (Finger Lakes Community College Earns $3.35 Million Grant) and my professor/advisor (John at Backyard Beasts) is also a co-principal investigator of the grant. I began studying in John's Black Bear Management class at FLCC, and learning about this interesting and understudied type of marking and behaviors that black bears have been observed creating. I began reading everything I could about black bears, and eventually John suggested presenting our class's work at a local student science conference (Rochester Academy of Science). I put together a 12(ish) minute long oral presentation, and started on a "quest" of sorts. I didn't realize at the time that in a few short years, I would be applying and getting accepted to national conferences with this topic. Since that first presentation, I've presented at: the Finger Lakes Institute Research Conference, the Northeastern Natural History Conference, the State University of NY Undergraduate Research Symposium, CCURI's own 1st national conference, and the National Conference of Undergraduate Research. It's amazing to me.

I am just so grateful to John, and Jim Hewlett (the brilliant man who wrote the grant, and who is now it's executive director) for all they are doing for URs like myself. There are countless others who have made this thing possible for me and other students, and I give you all a shout out as well!

So off I go! If you're at the TWS conference this week, perhaps we'll run into eachother.

 

 

John and I at the Quabbin Reservoir in Massachusetts this past summer, posing next to a bear-scratched and bitten red pine.

Travel, travel, and more travel!

As an FLCC student, I often got amazing

opportunities to work “in the field”

with live wildlife. Photo credit: John Van Niel

As a student at Finger Lakes Community College, I was very fortunate to be able to participate in an undergraduate research study about black bear marking behaviors.

Coincidentally, a professor at FLCC, Jim Hewlett, wrote a grant to the National Science Foundation several years ago. In I believe 2011, FLCC was granted approximately $3.5 million dollars to start up the Community College Undergraduate Research Initiative.

This was VERY exciting news for FLCC, but the grant has touched students at community colleges across the country. There are the 5 Original Regional Partners, 26 other Partners, and 4 New Regional Collaborators from New York to Hawaii, from Washington State to the Florida Keys. Check out the CCURI Partner Page to learn all about what kind of research CCURI students are participating in!

I’ve been able to present my study of these black bear behaviors several times over the past 2 years. I started out with local conferences: the 38th Rochester Academy of Science Paper Session, the 7th Annual Finger Lakes Research Conference, and the 3rd Annual State University of New York’s Undergraduate Research Symposium. Then I attended my first regional conference, the Northeastern Natural History Conference. I was receiving great feedback, people were interested in what I was learning about, and I felt I have a valid topic to share with other scientists.

This year I applied to, and was accepted to, the National Conference of Undergraduate Research (NCUR) in La Crosse, Wisconsin. I also was invited to attend our grant, CCURI’s, first national conference which was held in Bethesda, Maryland.

Learning about bears was always fun for me, so it amazes me that I just returned from 2 national conferences, and actually while I was in Wisconsin, I was applying for another one! I hope to present at the National Wildlife Society Conference being held in Milwaukee this fall.

My study poster, which I use when presenting.

Attending these conferences, whether there are 150 people like there was at the Finger Lakes Research Conference, or 3,500 people like at NCUR, is always exciting. I love to meet people. I also love sharing what I’ve been learning, as well as learning about what other students are up to across New York State, the region, and the country!



Presenting at Montgomery Community College in Maryland. March 2013. Photo credit: Michael Blocker



Presenting at the University of Wisconsin at La Crosse. April 2013. Photo credit: Melissa Miller

 

CCURI and FLCC representatives at NCUR!
Melissa Miller (FLCC student), Michael McIntyre (FLCC student),
Dr. Beth VanWinkle (CCURI Project Director), and myself (FLCC alumni).

I know this isn’t a very exciting wildlife entry, I just wanted to share what I’m up to when I’m NOT in the field playing with bear cubs or camera traps! It’s exciting to be involved with something “bigger than myself”. I can not thank enough the CCURI team: Jim, Beth, Heather, and of course John. What you do, plus all of the other “staff” at other colleges, are doing, are amazing and progressive things for those of us who got our start at the humble community college.

(PLUS...I got to meet Trailblazer, and some of his amazing students!)

Black bear den season: part III

It's been awhile since I've been able to write. I had a busy weekend in DC at a conference, and also my power cord for my laptop shorted out and stopped working. BUT I'm back from DC and I'm all powered up!

If you want to get caught up on my 2013 bear den experiences, check out this link: bear dens.



Site of Den #2. Click to enlargen.

On March 14 and 15, I was invited to hang out with some NYSDEC biologists and technicians while they did some bear den checks. In this entry I'll outline my experience at den #2!

Den #2 was interesting because it was located about 80 yards from the landowner's house. It was just about in plain sight from the back of the house, although it was shielded a little bit by the thick brush it was in.

If the home owner's were outside talking, or their dog barked, the bears I'm sure could easily hear them. But, the sow (or mother bear) apparently wasn't bothered, and chose that spot to have her triplets.


FLCC student Judi McDougall attempts to access the bear den to take measurements.

In the last entry I focused mostly on what happens with the cubs during a visit. This entry I'll focus on mom. She really is what the biologists are most interested in I think. How the bear team finds the den is from tracking down mom, who is wearing a collar. This collar does sometimes need maintenance, or a battery change, so while the bears are semi-stationary in the den is the perfect time to do it.

On our lunch break, Wildlife Biologist Art Kirsch prepares the chemicals (a mixture of Ketamine and Xylazine) for the next den visit. The chemicals are then put into a dart which is loaded into a low velocity pistol or a rifle powered by compressed air, a CO2 cartridge or a .22 blank. The biologists aim for the bear's hip, which has a

Accompanying us on these visits are Rochester, NY Seneca Park Zoo staff: a veterinarian Dr. Jeff Wyatt DVM, and veterinary technician Robin English. Both are there with the animal's health and safety as their first priority.

A select few members of "the bear team" approach the den first. Art, technicians, and the vets go first. It's a tense few moments as they're trying to chemically immobilize the adult bear. Bears do not truly hibernate (see this blog entry: The true NY hibernators), so if spooked, and so inclined, they can get up and run away. So the team has to move in stealth mode until he/she is darted, and they've given it time to set in. If all goes to plan, the whole process should take about 20 minutes. Then the clock starts ticking. There's approximately 1 hour of time to work while the animal is immobilized.



From left to right: Robin (with her back turned),
Dr. Wyatt, Jeb (a Fish and Wildife Technician), and Art.

Dr. Wyatt and Robin are responsible for watching the bear's vital signs. This includes heart rate, breathing rate, temperature, and maintaining good oxygen levels.

Meanwhile, the DEC team is busily checking the collar, tagging the bear (if it hasn't been already), extracting a tooth for aging (if it hasn't been already), tatooing an ID number on the gum (if it hasn't been already), and gathering other data points. If some or all of these things have been done already, as was the case this time, "processing" the adult moves fairly quickly.

You might notice that the bear is laying on a silver space blanket. This provides a buffer between the animal and the cold ground. While under "the drugs", it cannot thermoregulate, or maintain a constant internal temperature. An animal can quickly become hypthermic if this step isn't observed. Also, between Art's hands is a red and green piece of fabric. This is a fleece sleeve that they slide over the face to protect the eyes. One of the chemicals in the cocktail paralyzes all muscles, so the bear can't blink. So to keep the bright light and debris out of the eyes, they use this sleeve or sometimes I've seen them place large band-aids over the eyes too.

I once got to take the temperature of a large male bear. Not orally. :)

 

 

The little gadget see above, is a pulse oximeter. If you've spent anytime in the hospital, you may have had this thing clipped to your index finger. It measures the concentration of oxygen in the bloodstream, and this one also monitored the pulse. Without this tool, the vet must keep his fingers on an artery almost constantly to make sure the pulse is steady and strong. He also kept pressing on a mucous membrane (commonly the gums). If they're bright and pink, there's a healthy oxygen level in the blood. If the gums are ashy and gray, we've got problems. So, this pulse oximeter is not an "instead of" tool, but an "addition to" tool. It also beeps outloud in time with the pulse, so you can listen instead of totally concentrate while pressing on an artery through the skin. They've never used one before, and weren't sure if it would work. There was a strong enough pulse in the tongue though, and all were pleasantly surprised with how well it all worked out.

While the bear is "out", they allowed me to explore her a little bit. When else will I get to look so closely at a bear paw?

Because this mother bear was mom to triplets, I believe (all the visits are blending together!), she was engorged with milk. Bear nipples are set up a bit differently than our domestic pets. She only has 6 nipples. Two are down low on her abdomen, and the other 4 are up high on her chest.

Her claws were beautiful. Not made for slashing prey, but more for digging. Bears are also extremely dextrous with their digits, and can pluck berries from a vine with their paws and their lips.

Jeb (on left) is now a DEC Fish and Wildlife Technician, but he got his start at Finger Lakes Community College and SUNY Cobleskill, just as I am. Jeb is fitting the new collar with fresh batteries. The "old" collar is at right on the ground. The collar's band is leather, but does have a canvas tab on it. If for some reason, the bear team can't get their hands on this bear again in the next year to change it out, and the bear happens to be on the loose and growing, that canvas tab can be torn away and the collar removed. It's always a risk when putting a multi-thousand dollar piece of equipment on a wild animal.

Danika Van Niel (my professor's daughter) hands a bear cub to Fish and Wildife Technician Ron Newell to be placed back in the den with mom. Once all of the "work" is done, the cubs MUST go back, although we may not want them to!
Photo credit: John Van Niel

A parting shot of the happy family, back in the den.
Photo credit: John Van Niel 

Yet another FANSTASTIC experience in the field with these people. I can tell you that it doesn't get old, and I feel so very fortunate to be included. Making connections with the right people, and a little persistence certainly pays off. Stay tuned for at least one more bear entry to come!

Black bear den season: part II

In my previous post, I shared with blog readers that I was afforded a very unique opportunity. I was invited to attend 3 black bear den visits where biological information is taken, and live bears are handled. I am VERY fortunate and very happy to share what I learned.

I’ll begin by explaining WHY we want to visit black bear dens and handle the bears. I had a very outdoorsy and wildlife saavy friend write to me and say “Not trying to be a buzz kill but this is a wild animal. Why are we handling them like a child or a pet? makes no sense to me that they are exploited to human touch and then hunted, killed skinned and eaten!” I will admit that at first, I got hot. Here’s a man who sticks out in my mind as a conservationist, and a life-long hunter and trapper…and yet he can’t understand that what I’m participating in is important to conserving wildlife?


Den #1 was located within the township of Almond, NY

Click to enlargen

In Western, NY and specifically the Finger Lakes region, black bears are moving Northward from Pennsylvania. Over the past 10-12 years they’ve really made a comeback. A combination of factors have influenced this. Many farms are being abandoned, and land is reverting back to how it was historically wooded instead of wide open agricultural fields. This is allowing the bears, and other animals, more cover and suitable habitat. I also think that bears are particularly adaptable. They are similar in feeding and human interaction habits to raccoons. Many people have preconceived notions that bears are vicious. ALL wild animals have tendencies to be vicious. Deer mice can act vicious, cottontails, foxes, and yes bears can act vicious. But black bears don’t TEND to be vicious, unless they are sick, wounded, or given reason to be defensive. I liken them to raccoons because often the most they are to humans are annoying. There are a lot of summer homes and hunting camps in the Finger Lakes that are seasonally used. Bears looking for a place to hunker down may break into these camps. And they love bird feeders, grills, garbage, cars with coolers, and all sorts of other treats that people living in this newly reclaimed “bear country” forget to put away. They’re really just like a 200 pound raccoon. Of course bears are capable of greater damage, so they’re often feared more than ‘coons.

Ok, so all that being said, since bears are moving back into “our” territory, the biologists of the Department of Environmental Conservation Wildlife Division strive to learn as much about their habits and movements as possible. The easiet and least invasive way of doing this, is to place a collar of sorts on certain bears. In Region 8, for example (which is where I visited dens), the biologists are monitoring approximately a total of 7-15 adult bears. Also, with some of those adults are cubs or yearlings…but those are not individually monitored. There are a lot of human-bear interactions, and also there is an interest in hunting black bears in New York State. They are considered “big game” , and to help control the population, there are hunting seasons, which you can view here: Deer and Bear Hunting Seasons.

To address a word that my friend used…”exploiting” the bears. I do not look at handling these bears and cubs as exploiting. Yes, we take pictures with them. But for them, it’s a moment in time. As Art Kirsch, Senior Region 8 Wildlife Biologist, told me that “the science obtained from monitoring these bears, far outweighs the inconvenience they experience”, which is very true. The adults are always immobilized with a cocktail of drugs. There is no safe way to handle the adults without them being immoblized. The cubs though this time of year are quite small and easy to handle. There is no reason to impose unnecessary risk (there's always risk with use of chemical immobilizers- bear, dog, cat, human) by immobilizing the cubs. The largest cub I think I handled was just around 6 pounds, and the smallest was 3.2 pounds. If any memories of these interactions with the bear biologists are remembered, it’s not of terror and panic. The animals are treated with respect, voices are kept low, and the adult bear’s eyes are covered to further keep it calm. Cubs are kept in fleece bags to keep them warm and secure.

A question I’ve been asked since I shared that I handled bear cubs is “Won’t the mother reject them with your scent on them?”…no! Please keep in mind that the protocol for these visits has the bear's health and safety as the first priority. The mother is handled the same as the cubs, her den is entered by biologists when she’s removed, and so everything and the whole bear family have human scent. Everyone is required to wear gloves, and “nuzzling” is prohibited. The team does not want the other people at the den visits, to "Disney-fy" the bears. Really there is nothing cuter than a 2 month old bear cub, but these are wild animals who are returning to the wild. They are not pets or cartoons. We do not name them, or kiss them, and hugging is ONLY allowed to keep them warm.We are handling these cubs to obtain data from them, as well as keep them warm while mom is being processed. They've never been out of then den before, and have never been away from mom's side. If for some reason the mother can not be handled (she runs off, for example), the cubs are not handled. It’s all of them or none of them. That way, everyone smells the same.

The whole experience takes less than 1 hour, as that is how long we have for the drugs to keep a hold on the adult. This is not a process that drags on for several hours, but is done efficiently and safely for all involved.

Now I know if you clicked on this post, you don’t REALLY care about all that I’ve written. You came for the pictures. I will describe my experience of den #1 through the captions. Also, all people mentioned by name are from Finger Lakes Community College (unless otherwise noted) where there is a Black Bear Management course offered. John Van Niel is the professor of that course.

 

In this massive brush pile of dead Christmas trees and other debris, a mother bear and 3 cubs are in a cozy den. Region 8 Wildlife technician Jeb McConnell along with Region 8 Wildlife Biologist Art Kirsch and Region 9 Wildlife Biologist Tim Spierto are searching for an access point to shoot the chemical immobilizer into the mother bear. Once the drugs are administered, they must wait 15-20 minutes for it to take effect.

After the sow was stabilized, I was invited to climb up on top of the brush pile (10-12 feet off the ground) to see the entrance of the den.

The veterinarian on hand, Dr. Jeff Wyatt DVM, of the Seneca Park Zoo, went 8 feet down into the den to watch the sow's vitals. She maintained a strong and steady heartbeat, and was breathing normally through out. She was not removed from the den, due to how precarious the brush pile was to maneuver. Jeff mentioned to me while I was taking this picture that he was almost 'hot' down in the den. Lucky, we were freezing out on top!



Art Kirsch, Senior Wildlife Biologist, has the second best seat in the house. Art held his post just outside the den monitoring all that was going on, and recording data from the sow still in the den.



When cubs are first removed, the are placed into a fleece sack as seen here. This helps contain them (they are wiggly) and keep them warm. Weights are taken for each cub, as seen here. Alicia Walker is reading the scale, as John Van Niel holds it. Ben Williams and Julia Lampman record data in the background.

Here John Van Niel removes the cub from the bag for a moment so that the cub can be sexed. I think in this case, it's a girl! Grasping the cub by the scruff of the neck is not painful, this is something the mother, like many other mother animals, do to move their babies when they are too young to move on their own.



Here, I am holding the cub as Alicia continues to take measurements. There is a hair length (from the top of the head) to ear length ratio that can be plugged into an equation, which can give a fairly accurate date of birth. Jon Muller and Kevin Skryzinski watch on, while Ben records the data.

Here John is readying me for the insertion of the Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tag. This is very similar to a 'micro chip' you may have put in your cat or dog. It is not an active means of tracking the animal, but if the animal is handled again in the future, a receiver can be waved over the location of insertion (between shoulder blades under skin), and the unique ID

number can be read.



Cubs are born with blue eyes, as many mammals seem to be. I do not know why this is, but with age the eyes will likely darken to brown.

Once all data was collected from cubs and the mother bear, we formed a bit of a 'bucket brigade' from the ground up and over the brush pile to get the cubs back into the den. It was easier and safer than trying to hold your balance and keep your footing while holding onto a squirming cub. Photo credit: Julia Lampman

 

 

In total, the experience was around an hour and a half. That includes walking time from the road to the den, and the time it took the team to immobilize mom, wait for the drugs to kick in, and then for all of the data collection. It was one of those experiences that I could not WAIT to partake in, and then in a blink, it was over. BUT, fortunately I had 2 more dens to look forward to. I will be blogging about those experiences soon. Hope you enjoyed!

Black bear den season, part I

We all have bucket lists, right? Maybe some people actually right them out and check them off as amazing things are accomplished and experienced. Some of us might just daydream about “what if I got to…”, and if it happens, that’s awesome! And if it doesn’t, then oh well. Well I have a specific bucket list in order, but just filed away in my head. I’ve had this DREAM of holding a black bear cub for more than half my life. Summer vacations spent in the Adirondacks, always hoping for a chance sighting of a bear, started my love for bears. As I entered into college at Finger Lakes Community College, I learned of a course offered called Black Bear Management. This class is exclusively about black bears IN New York State. What could be better?


On Thursday, March 14th, my #1 bucket list item was mentally checked off.

Holding my first black bear cub.

Almond, NY - Photo credit: Alicia Walker

I held a bear cub.

Actually, over the past 2 days, I’ve held probably 7 or 8 cubs, and handled 2 Mama Bears.

Let me take a moment to explain how I got here.

When I took BBM in 2010-2011, during “bear season” which is Feb-March-April (depends on the year), I did not get to handle a bear cub. Working with wild animals guarantees no absolute results, except that they are unpredictable.

Bears do not truly hibernate (please refer to these posts for clarification on NY hibernators), so if spooked at the den site, they can get up and run.

And that’s what happened to the two dens I visited in the spring of 2011. Over the past 2 years, I’ve kept in touch with Art Kirsch, Region 8 Senior Wildlife Biologist for the NYSDEC. We’ve emailed, bumped into eachother here and there, and now we’re Facebook friends too, so we keep in touch often. I don’t know why Art invited me, but he did. He did not have to invite another person to these visits, especially since I had my chance, and we had naughty bears when it WAS my chance. It can be hectic at the visits with all that needs to get done, and the spectators that are there. BUT I made myself useful by carrying things, and lending a hand, and keeping cubs warm!

Through the rest of this post, and over the next few days, I’ll explain all that goes on at the den visits and why. For now, I’ll leave you with a few pictures and I hope that you’ll check back soon for more!

Black bear cub

Adult female black bear paw



Pure happiness.

CCURI and NCUR

I know, that's a lot of letters. I'm in a bit of a lull with camera trapping and other fun projects, so I thought I'd share these exciting upcoming events with the Blog World.

Myself and a male black bear in Addison, NY
February 2012. Photo credit: John Van Niel

While I was a student at Finger Lakes Community College in Western, NY I was able to participate in a truly unique course titled "Black Bear Management". For my entire life I have been infatuated with black bears. I will admit that up until 3 years ago, my infatuation was totally based on looks. I was shallow. Bears of all sorts are so darn cute!

But since participating in this class, I've grown to love them for what's inside. And what they do. And how they do it! Black bears are relatively common in NY. They are not found at an even dispersement across the state, and you are not able to hunt them just everywhere yet. But, they are conspicuous and pretty darn cool. So when they ARE around, you know it.

The one part of BBM that I want to share briefly is this project of studying a particular marking behavior that black bears do. If you'd like more information on the specifics, see here and here.

Through a grant that jim Hewlett, a faculty member at FLCC wrote, the Community College Undergraduate Research Initiative through the National Science Foundation was born. CCURI has been influencing undergrads across the nation for the past 2 years, and I was lucky enough to attend the homebase college. CCURI funded not only the class, but funded a trip for my class to attend an area in Massachusetts where these marking behaviors were being documented by a couple of researchers. After that trip, the professor of the course, John, was so excited about what we were learning that he urged us to put a presentation together to share it with others. I ended up being the only student left that following semester (Fall 2011) because everyone else had graduated. That's the problem with community colleges...high rate of turnover! Since that summer, I've presented at the:

·         38^th Rochester Academy of Science Paper Session, Monroe Community College, Henrietta, New York, October 29, 2011

·         7^th Annual Finger Lakes Research Conference. Hobart and William Smith Colleges, Geneva, New York, November 19,2011 (Awarded Best Student Poster)

·         3^rd Annual State University of New York’s Undergraduate Research Symposium, Empire State Plaza, Albany, New York, February 19, 2012



·         Northeastern Natural History Conference, OnCenter, Syracuse, New York, April 16, 2012



From left to right: Barb Dagata, the SUNY Chancellor Nancy Zimpher,

Courtney Stein, and myself at the SUNY Undergraduate Research Syposium.

February 2012 - Photo credit: Beth Van Winkle 

And NOW I'm excited to share that I was asked to attend CCURI's very own national conference this coming March in Washington, DC! I will not only be presenting my poster, but I will be speaking to a group of students about the struggles and triumphs I've experienced as an undergraduate researcher in a community college. Even though I am no longer at FLCC, those 2 years were the best of my life so far and that is largely because of the opportunities I was presented as a student.

Also, back in November, I applied for the National Conference of Undergraduate Research (NCUR) which is being held in La Crosse, WI. I, along with 2 other FLCC students have been accepted to present our work. Melissa is presenting on work she's done in the caribbean monitoring coral reef degradation, and Michael is presenting on methods of river otter scat preservation for future DNA testing. We are all honored and excited to rub elbows with other undergraduates at this prestigous event!

 

I have one possibly two more events coming up this year that I will be presenting at. One has not been announced yet, and so I'm going to jinx myself and share that...just yet. The other is the National Wildlife Society Conference being held this October in Milwaukee, WI.

 

I have a lot of exciting things coming up, and I'm very thankful to have these opportunities available to me.

River otters in the Finger Lakes

This is a long one, so get comfortable!

January 11, 2013

Today I had the pleasure of accompanying a past professor of mine from Finger Lakes Community College (John), and a current Biotechnology student (Will) on a tramp through the woods. We were at the Hi Tor Wildlife Management Area in Italy Valley, NY. The goal: to find a river otter (Lontra canadensis) latrine site.

Some brief natural history about the river otter: they are in the weasel family (Mustelidae) along with wolverines and badgers (which do not live in NY), fishers, martens, mink, short/long-tailed weasels, and least weasels. They’re all very long-bodied, veracious hunters and fighters, and they all contain a scent gland that leaves behind a very musky scent. Weasels are smelly, but I love them! Around 12ish years ago, river otters were locally extirpated in the Finger Lake region. They could still be found in pockets in the Adirondacks and perhaps the Catskills. The DEC, along with private monies, collected and live-trapped otters from these regions. They were then rehabilitated, vaccinated, fattened up, and then released at various areas all over the Finger Lakes. It’s ONE example of an animal trapped and releases in another area that was a success story. Over the past decade +, the river otters have been coming back in force. There is not a season for trapping allowed, because it has not been determined that they are THAT stable, but they’re back. There have been live and sign sightings, incidental trappings, and roadkills found all over the region. Oh, and what’s a latrine? It’s also referred to as a “toilet” site. The otters (and some other critters) will defecate and urinate in the same spot over and over. This is a territorial marking behavior.

There is a study going on currently out of the Environmental School of Forestry (SUNY ESF) in Syracuse that hopes to document where the otter are, a potential abundance of them, and then “who” is around. Camera traps are being used, as well as scat samples are being taken so that DNA work can be done to determine the “who” or genetic variation. Much of the camera-trapping has begun over the summer of 2012, and not much work (to my knowledge) has been done in the lab working on scat samples.

Will, the biotech student from FLCC, is assisting in the scat collection. Since these easily-accessible latrines were found, and he lives nearby, he and others will be monitoring the area for fresh scats. John knew the location, and so off we went.

Our destination location: River Otter Pond

 As we approached the pond, we made sure to keep quiet. The last time John had visited the pond, he observed an otter on the shore. We hoped that this would be the case again today. Well, we were NOT disappointed! After a short 2-3 minutes of standing still and scanning the ice, I spotted a little head pop out of an ice hole that the otters were breathing at. I unfortunately don’t have any pictures to share of that sighting, but we counted 3! Below is a picture of the ice hole, with tracks leading to/from it.

In the top picture, I'm standing on the side of the pond we first approached, and that is the view 

I watched the otters at. The arrow is the ice hole. The bottom picture is across the other side of the 

pond, looking back in the direction I originally was. The ice hole is much easier to see from here.

The sighting was VERY cool for me. Weasels in general are very intelligent and wary critters. They are curious, but quick. We were able to sneak up undetected and catch a glimpse of them acting naturally and doing “otter stuff”. It was amazing, and yet ANOTHER confirmation that I’m in the right field of study and work! After watching the otters until they went back under the ice, we set to work looking for the 2 otter latrine sites that were known to be at the pond’s edge.

The first location was easily spotted. There was otter scat in abundance.

Otter latrine site #1. Notice the entrance/exit hole at left.

Otter scat is easy to identify, in my opinion. Because their primary diet consists of fish, and invertebrates like crayfish, the scales and exoskeletons are found in the scat, because it’s too tough to digest. See below.

Note the scales and delicate fish bones in the scat.

Will collecting scat samples.

Will is looking to determine which method of preservation will best keep the integrity of the scat. Once it is expelled from the body, the scat is decomposing, thus the DNA is breaking up. Since the work to determine the genetics of the scat can't be done in the field, it must be preserved until lab time. Will is trying no preservative (L), a chemical I don't remember (M), and ethanol (R). Then all samples will be frozen until he's ready to work in the lab.

Once Will took what he needed from this location, we hiked over to the other side of the pond. Still no sign of the otters.

On this side of the pond, John knew for sure there was a latrine site. He actually visited this exact spot the last time he was here, and he deployed a Cuddeback Attack IR camera at the site. Bound to get otters, right?

The Cuddeback Attack's view of the latrine site.

Success! Two river otters in a 'slide'. This is a behavior otters often do, to get from point A to point B. 

Photo credit: John Van Niel

AND TRIPLE SUCCESS! 3 otters this time! Is this the 3 otters that we saw earlier? Regardless, what an awesome capture. Photo credit: John Van Niel

Total success! The grad student in charge of the overall project is going to be so excited when she sees the site and the pictures.

Lastly, after Will took his samples he did one last thing. The grad student I just mentioned, Elaina, will be visiting this spot in the future to check it out, and to collect samples. Another thing you can do to make sure that you have a good scat sample, is to get the freshest possible. Well, how do you know if the poop is fresh? Sight? Smell? Texture? Gross.

Well, you can glitterize it!

Sprinkling glitter on the scat will tell Elaina which is freshest. Tomorrow, when she visits,
she'll know that any 'unglittered' scat is less than 24 hours old.

Pretty!

This latrine site was huge. Probably 8 feet wide and absolutely covered...with poop.

What a wonderful day. I know to many, this seems like a bizarre thing to be interested in and to get excited about. But seeing the otters was a total chance, yet sign left behind is much easier and common to observe, and can tell us so much about the lives of these amazing animals.

I will soon have a blog entry or 2 about Otter’s cousin, Fisher. Another fascinating wild animal!

PS- for John's take of the day, check out his blog Backyard Beasts: All that glitters is not gold, sometimes it's otter poop.