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Wildlife biologists Sara Holm and Jason Holley of the California Department of Fish and Game uncover a bear Wednesday before placing it in a manmade den near Truckee for the winter.
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ENLARGE
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A biologist attaches a radio transmitter to the young bear's ear.
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A long, pink tongue poked out through a hole in the locked metal crate, stretching to lick a teaspoon of strawberry jam.
The sweet snack was the last for the 1-year-old female bear before a team of Department of Fish and Game wildlife biologists released her into the wild near Sagehen Creek Field Station not far from Truckee Wednesday.
While the bear was enjoying the treat, a state wildlife veterinarian, Pam Swift, cautiously opened the door and poked the bear with a long pole equipped with a syringe containing the sedative Telazol. The shot quieted the young animal before moving her to an artificial den the biologists had prepared in the woods.
Caught in September by Fish and Game personnel after its mother was killed by a motorist in Truckee, the juvenile bruin was taken to a wildlife rehabilitation facility at the department’s North Central Region Headquarters in Rancho Cordova.
The sweet snack was the last for the 1-year-old female bear before a team of Department of Fish and Game wildlife biologists released her into the wild near Sagehen Creek Field Station not far from Truckee Wednesday.
While the bear was enjoying the treat, a state wildlife veterinarian, Pam Swift, cautiously opened the door and poked the bear with a long pole equipped with a syringe containing the sedative Telazol. The shot quieted the young animal before moving her to an artificial den the biologists had prepared in the woods.
Caught in September by Fish and Game personnel after its mother was killed by a motorist in Truckee, the juvenile bruin was taken to a wildlife rehabilitation facility at the department’s North Central Region Headquarters in Rancho Cordova.
Over three months, the orphaned bear more than doubled its 40-pound weight before being returned to the Truckee area. The bear is the first of several that state wildlife officials expect to release in the Tahoe area this winter.
Once the sedative kicked in, the biologists carefully removed the bear from the crate and onto a blanket, where they checked its vitals and attached a transmitter to one ear that will be checked by radio twice a month.
The team placed the tranquilized bear on a sled and transported her by snowmobile to the den, a plastic dog igloo buried in the snow on a north-facing slope next to a large fallen log.
“It’s great bear habitat,” said biologist Jason Holley after placing the bear inside the den and covering it with fir branches.
Once the sedative kicked in, the biologists carefully removed the bear from the crate and onto a blanket, where they checked its vitals and attached a transmitter to one ear that will be checked by radio twice a month.
The team placed the tranquilized bear on a sled and transported her by snowmobile to the den, a plastic dog igloo buried in the snow on a north-facing slope next to a large fallen log.
“It’s great bear habitat,” said biologist Jason Holley after placing the bear inside the den and covering it with fir branches.
Tahoe bears by the numbers
Zero bears were re-released in 2007 in the Truckee-Tahoe area
1 bear re-released in 2008, two more expected this winter 70 bears killed by motorists in the Truckee-Tahoe area in 2007 Approximately 25 depredation permits issued in the Truckee-Tahoe area last year Estimated 25,000 to 30,000 black bears in California Estimated between 0.5 and 1.0 bears per square mile in the Sierra Nevada <i>— Information from the California Department of Fish and Game</i> |
The move went smoothly, and the biologists said they think the juvenile bear has a good chance of surviving.
“She’s got a good shot at becoming a wild bear,” Holley said. “It’s the best chance of survival we can give it. Very few animals qualify (to be re-released.)”
When spring comes, the biologists hope the young bear will find plenty of food, including logs filled with grubs, berries or a deer carcass, and stay far from human habitat and its garbage cans.
“We want to keep her as wild as possible,” Swift said.
But with Highway 89 only a few miles away, and a record 70 of bears killed by motorists in the Truckee area in 2007, the chance remains that the bear could meet the same fate its mother did, Holley said.
“She could get hit by a car,” the biologist said.
The wildlife experts said they hope the bear will stay in the den when the expected storms move in this weekend.
“It’s the best situation,” Holley said. “If she wanders too far, it could be detrimental — but it’s up to nature at this point.”
“She’s got a good shot at becoming a wild bear,” Holley said. “It’s the best chance of survival we can give it. Very few animals qualify (to be re-released.)”
When spring comes, the biologists hope the young bear will find plenty of food, including logs filled with grubs, berries or a deer carcass, and stay far from human habitat and its garbage cans.
“We want to keep her as wild as possible,” Swift said.
But with Highway 89 only a few miles away, and a record 70 of bears killed by motorists in the Truckee area in 2007, the chance remains that the bear could meet the same fate its mother did, Holley said.
“She could get hit by a car,” the biologist said.
The wildlife experts said they hope the bear will stay in the den when the expected storms move in this weekend.
“It’s the best situation,” Holley said. “If she wanders too far, it could be detrimental — but it’s up to nature at this point.”
