The Celina Democrat. (Celina, O. [Ohio]) 1895-1921, 1912-03-01

with truth that
\ Ite we have practical
Y IA ly lived together
Nl.I side by sid o .
Sometimes just a
little ridge might have separated u.s.
where / could see, possibly the next
morning after, that he had been nav
Ing a fine feast IN a blueherry patch'
One night we were little more so
ciable, | had just removed the pelt
from a coyote, and had intended car
rying the carcass away from camp the
next day, but left It that night lew
feet from my tent. During the night
my friend (who by the way always
reminds me Of a goodnatured boy
with a fur overcoat onl, came down
and saved me the trouble by carrying
It away for me ! did not hear nm
arrive, for / believe / was asleep, bul
the telltale tracks were enough 70
convince me in the morning AND SO
by having lived with him in his own
home, watched photographed, ana
studied his ways, ! can set down Tor
those who may be interested. some oi
his characteristics and habits.
The range OF the black bear eX'
tends from Mexico TO Alaska, and
they have been met with in nearly
every state and territory within the
United States, also Labrador, Province
Of Quebec, Alberta and Assi1iboia,
British Columbia, and the Mackenzie
River basin. All black bears hibernate
during the winter months. There are,
however, woodsmen i'm the south who
disagree with me on this point saying
they have seen their tracks during
every month Of the winter, and the
mild climate does not force them to
lay UP IN a cave or den as IL would In
The more severe weather Of northern
ATTITUDES. ! have myself seen bear
tracks during the winter months. ana
even In the deep snow of the northern
state But this is the exception, and
| have no doubt that these bears are
simply shifting TO another sleeping
place, having been driven out for one
reason or another. Their dens may
not have been well chosen. and they
possibly became leally, or exposed to
the winds, or some hunter might pass
that way with a keen nose and an in
auisitive canine that would cause him
TO roll out in a hurry. It is safe to
say all black bears den up both north
and south sometime between NOvem-
ber / and January /, depending on
the altitude, weather and latitude.
They emerge in the spring usually
from the first part of April to the mid
die Of May, according to conditions,
the males often appearing some two
weeks before the females. 1t is at
this time in the spring, just after they
have left their winter quarters, that
bears pelt is in its prime. During
as no food is laid up,
they, Of course, do not eat, nor do
they drink, unless they make use OF
the snow that has fallen about them.
Contrary to the general supposition,
they are not in deep coma or hazy
condition, for they are easily aroused.
1t is true that they sleep, but are
quick to detect danger and fully equal
to the occasion of making off and
looking up other quarters If dis
turbed.
The cunning little cubs (for what
the name more than a little
woolly, back cubD are brought forth
during Information, usually between
l and March 1, and It is
several weeks before they are able to
leave the den with their mother From
one to four cubs may be born-l
would say two or three is the aver.
age; four is rare, but three is often
met with, and a she-bear followed by
one cub does not always indicate that
the young hopeful had no brothers
or sisters, as they may not have sur
vived all the dangers Of cubdom At
birth they are ridiculously small, com.
pared with the size of the mother,
and weigh but a few ounces. / have
never weighed one, but understand
that DR.. Hornaday, director of the
New York Geological park, has, and
their weight runs from to Is ounces,
on the number in the lit
ter. Their eyes are closed-they have
no teeth, nor have they their little
furry jacket as yet. The reason ad-
vanced for bears being so unusually
small at birth is that the old bear
having remained all winter without
food, and not being able to forage for
some weeks after the young are born,
it would naturally be a great drain
to nurse cubs that weighed several
pounds. So Nature has thus provided
In this way.
Unlike the grizzly, the black bears
mate every year or nearly so. Griz-
zlys may he put down for about every
other year When the cubs are from
six to eight weeks old, they are able
to accompany their mother and do so