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Thursday, June 9, 2016

Fox in the Bear Den & First Cub Sighting

Back to the bear den -- all was quiet throughout March except that a red fox visited the bear den. He appeared to be attracted by the sound of the cubs crying. He stared at the entrance, taking a step or two toward it, and then backing off. When he got close to the entrance, the cubs went silent. He did that for 7 minutes!

Finally, he basically crawled into the den, with only his tail sticking out. I heard no sounds from the sow - no snorts or snarls. When the fox finally emerged, he did NOT have a cub in his mouth. I suspect that the sow hid the cubs under her and had a silent standoff with him.

Then, nothing much happened (the bears were snuggled in the den) until 4/10 - the day that the cubs decided that they wanted to go outside the den. However, mom didn't agree and kept pulling them back in. Here she is, resting between the 43 attempts that I counted of the cubs trying to escape!

All of this is included in a short video. You can watch it here or at Youtube. Although the scene appears quite bright through the trail cam lens - the lights were only infrared so the animals couldn't see them.

I sure hope that you enjoy it as much as I did! I love seeing the secret lives of our wildlife!

14 comments:

  1. Forty-three times! I had to laugh, but that poor mamabear!

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  2. I probably would have given up long before then -- And THANKFULLY the fox gave up after the first one!

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  3. What a brave fox!! Persistence seems to pay off with the cubs. It pays off for me too with my momma. Hehehhe
    Blessings,
    Buddy

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  4. Oh my! If only peeps were so patient with their offspring!!!

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  5. Wow she's a wonderful mother! I hope you have video of the what happened when the cubs rushed the entrance. So cute - the twins working together to foil mom :)

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  6. That's a pretty brave fox. I bet mom wishes she had a door to shut and lock.

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  7. That Mama Bear know who all other mothers know. How hard it is to keep the kids indoors when they want to go outside to play

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  8. thank you so much for sharing this.
    so interesting about the fox, it must have been hungry enough to take time considering the mamma bear.

    loved seeing the cub trying to escape. that mamma will have her hands full, maybe they all do.

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  9. Very daring fox, and what a life Mumma Bear has, I bet she is so glad she doesn't have more to look after.Super trailcams, as always.

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  10. Wow, was that fox brave or dumb? How we would love to have seen the cubs finally win out on Mama Bear:)

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  11. Fascinating video. I would never have imagined a fox going inside the den with a mother bear there. Doesn't seem like a good idea at all. Poor mother trying to manage her obstinate little ones. Last year was so good for bears here that many of them had quads. Can't imagine trying to keep four of them inside when they want out.

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