some Cub pic's

MRBB · Jul 2, 2020

well I know many of you's would maybe cringe about bears in your apple tree's
but for me I am fine with it, I enjoy watching nature at work
I have a bunch of OLD apple tree's 60+ yr old tree's, some 35+ ft tall with wide out reaching branches
most yrs I get a few tons of aapples off them , but last few yrs, so many late frosts and just crazy weather, apple production has been low

this yr however things WERE looking like I was going to have a LOT of apples come fall

BUT, LOL
seems my local bears have other plans, last few days I been having 4-7 different bears here picking what they can reach, broke a few branches, nothing bad, or again that I care about!

and well this lone cub can get out and up higher than MOM can
he(its a male)
will climb a DIFFERENT tree than mom, seems to prefer it that way, a when she is up same tree, she shakes it too much anmd he has to hold on for dear life over getting to eat!

but , its a cool way view to sit on the deck and get to watch bears enjoying a snack IMO

so, took a few pic's of the cub tonight for you's

this tree has more claw marks on it that any tree I ever seen, I have seen 5 bras in it at once before , its amazing how strong some of them thin branches are to support a full sized bear and then bears have NO fear of falling or a branch breaking
the cub will sleep in the tree at times, taking naps while mom eats too!, just dangling and out cold, I always worry one will \al, some day! but 30+ yrs and hasn't happened yet so, hope it stay's that way!

cub in below pic is an easy 25+ ft up at the top of the tree

MRBB · Jul 2, 2020

and a couple more for you's

Apple Junkie · Jul 8, 2020

How can you begrudge a hungry active bear cub a few apples. Your big apple tree can stand a few broken branches, my younger trees - not so much. I do love seeing these pics of cubs being cubs. The way I see it... it's on me if I don't adequately protect my younger trees, and expect some damage will happen no matter what. Great post.

MRBB · Jul 8, 2020

thanks, I fully agree, when we CHOOSE to plant food wildlife will eat, we honestly cannot dry about any damages that happen, after all an animal is just tryinbg to survive best they can, they have NO clue what your plans are or maybe even care what they are,
you make your land more attractive and well, you get more wildlife on it
its just par for the course!
I will admit I do get some frustration when wildlife does try to damage some NOT food things, but to be honest its always the small things that drive me nuts, mice in machines, squirrels in house or attic, and over the yrs I had my share of Carpenter ants and termites do some havoc on things!
not a bit fan of Mosquito's and ticks either, but like bears and such, being blessed to live where all things are, you have to take the good with the bad, and when possible protect things you maybe prize more, but them costs are again, part of the whole

I have counted and ID'd 17 different bears here this yr, adn only 1 being a cub,
so trust me, my tree's see a LOT of bears , the bark on these older tree's is just insance with how many claw marks they have, and most all the treee's near the,a s when bigger bears show up, the pecking order is played out and they just climb other tree's waiting there turns at times!

and I have seen bears UP a tree here sometimes for 8+ hours at a time, they will sleep up there wedged in V's on branches, cannot tell you how many times I expected to see one fall or find one under a tree!

A few yrs back, I had a female bear with 3 cubs, that I swear used to leave them here for me to baby sit

she would tree them in a pine tree near my deck and leave for 4-6 hours at a time, them cubs would be almost eye level with mo on the deck, hanging upside down sleeping, NO clue what was holding on to tree, as some times, just 1 paw would be lightly touching a branch!

but yes I feel very lucky to have so many critters here almost all day long too, from deer to ?? nothing like having wildlife you can watch from your couch if you like too LOL

Bill · Jul 8, 2020

I wish I could sleep in a tree like that!

good pictures.

MRBB · Aug 12, 2020

well 10 days ago, this cub went MIA, mother been here every day since without it(him, was a male cub)
well, minus the last 3 days, where she now has a new love interest hot on her heals ALL day and night long, I think in the past 3 days they been in my back yard about 12 hours a day and night, every time I am outside there here, or look out a window there there, she is playing hard to get as I gather her body isn;t ready yet to mate again, BUT this male doesn't seem to care(nor does the smaller one on there heels) the big male ended up beating the heck out of the smaller male in my driveway today too, but little guy didn;t learn to stay away came right back 15 minutes later and stayed back 20 yards or so!
the larger male, also, if you notice, he has some rather THIN hair, they get stressed out in mating season and loose a bunch of hair from it!, but there is alos a big problem in the state here with bears getting mange, so far have never had any here to date, and hope I never do, thats a sad way for them to duie!
state game dept has a drug they can give to cure it if they can get to bear to give it, but its not always easy to do so!

and its been HOT here the past few days mid 90's super humid
so I been filling the kiddie pool for them a few times a day as when they lay in it, all the more so the BIG one, ain;t much water left when they get out!
I took some video, haven't check trail cam's yet , but sure I got pic's of things, and then today I took a couple pics of the big male in the pool, I will guess he's about 450 lbs right now, and she is about 175-200 lbs
I go thru about 5 pools a yr here, buy them cheap at dollar store at end of summer for like .50 cents each, so there not a big deal, do go thru a lot of water filling them so often, but I find it super enjoyable to sit on deck and watch things using it!
bears to fall a sleep in it pretty often too on warmer days! which I also find super cool to see!

I figured I would post here over a new tread, as well, the story on the cub and all, and now he's gone, poor little guy, she was pretty hard on him all the time, NOT sure what happened to him, my guess is hit by a car, or maybe fell out of a tree!
only about 50% of cubs make it thru there first yr, this was this females bear FIRST time having any cubs and well, she wasn't so good at it!
but that's nature at work!

willy · Aug 12, 2020

Thanks for the update/story. I appreciate your willingness to let the bears be bears. Like most wildlife they don't get to live an undisruptive life. It's tough to do so in this getting more crowded world.

Troubles Trees · Aug 13, 2020

It is always great to get interaction with wildlife like this, I don't know if Bears would be my preference for a back yard critter but if you are ok with it, I certainly am. Great read bud.
I am thinking that if you dug a shallow hole to put the pool in the ground you might only have to buy one of them?

MRBB · Aug 13, 2020

digging a hole to place pool in would maybe save them from breaking/cracking, but would make it a LOT harder to empty them as often as I do to replace with clean water I do this some times 2-3 time s day, as with dirt about them and well, critters being dirty, all the more so when they lay in pool then dirt and then pool again! HAHA!
at 50 cents a pool, its not that costly to just replace as needed, typically get a few months out of one,

I did learn a while ago, to place wood under them, as rocks would push thru bottoms and cause leaks

if I could get grass to grow where I place the pool, that might help on keeping water cleaner longer, but as is, its only about 50 ft from my outside water hose, so refilling isn;'t that hard, well water sop not paying by the gallon here!
well is 800 ft deep, never been known to go dry so, all good there too!

its sort of funny, I have tried using a sprinkler near the pool too for them to go under/cool off, but in all my yrs at that they won't do it?
I HAVE had them crew a hole or two in a hose over the yrs, mostly cubs playing with hose, but thats rare and most times hoses were due to be replaced any how, been yrs too since that happened!

for a bunch of yrs I been wanting to add some minnows to the pool and see if they would chase them in it, I used to do that for my dog(a LAB) dump a bucket of minnows in a kiddie pool and you have a very entertained dog for about an hour trying to catch them all HAHA!
but no bait shops anymore near me, and trying to GUESS when a bear will show up makes timing things harder too, but do think that would be funny to watch!

I know adding ice cubes to pool makes them play with them and eat em !
all the more so when its cubs that find them in there,a s they never seen anything frozen before, and larger bears I guess find a cold snack on a HOT day enjoyable too!

pool is under an apple tree too, and as apples fall in, that also get them in and eating them!