S moke S ignals
march 1, 2014
11
Cubs were probably born in January
BEARS continued
from front page
inside the large hollowed-out log
and a set of eyes was looking out.”
The fallers left the area and called
Vandebergh, who contacted Dirk-
sen to see if Grand Ronde Natural
Resources Department staff could
help determine the status of the
compromised den. Everyone feared
that the nearby logging operations
spooked mother bear into abandon-
ing her cubs.
Dirksen set up three trail cam-
eras to determine whether mother
bear was returning to her cubs, as
well as try to determine the condi-
tion of the cubs.
“One was right at the opening and
the two others were at angles that
captured the opening of the log,”
Dirksen said.
On Wednesday morning, the
video footage showed that momma
bear returned at about 5 a.m. and
left 80 minutes later.
“She should be with them all
night,” Dirksen said. “Hibernating,
providing food and warmth to the
cubs.”
The cubs, which were probably
born in January, had their eyes
open, were fully covered in fur and
were tiny, Dirksen said.
“We were concerned they were
not going to make it,” Dirksen said.
“We told Don that we know the end
of this story. There was cutting all
around here. Bears don’t have a
backup plan. I would question if
she had another place to take her
cubs even if she returned.”
But Vandebergh convinced Dirk-
sen into giving momma bear one
more night to return to her cubs.
On Thursday morning, Dirksen,
Grand Ronde Tribal biologist Nate
Breece, Oregon State Police Senior
Trooper Adam Turnbo and mem-
Photo courtesy of Colby Drake
Logan Kneeland, Tribal Silviculture & Fire Protection technician, holds one of
three bear cubs that were saved by loggers and state and Grand Ronde Tribal
employees from almost certain starvation on Thursday, Feb. 20. The cubs are
now at the Oregon Zoo, receiving care and feeding and will eventually end up
at a zoo in Austin, Texas.
bers of the falling crew returned to
the den. After checking the footage
from Wednesday night, which did
not show a return visit from mother
bear, Dirksen said it was time to
save the cubs, who were crying.
“The writing was on the wall,”
Dirksen said. “There was no reason
she was going to come back.”
Dirksen and Breece climbed into
the log, passing the three cubs – two
females and one male – up as if put-
ting out a fire in a bucket brigade,
and members of the falling crew
tucked the cubs into their jackets,
keeping them warm until they
reached Turnbo’s truck. Turnbo,
meanwhile, stood guard just in
case mother bear was nearby or
returned.
“Those guys put a lot into trying
to protect those cubs,” Dirksen said.
“Kirk Luoto and his crew probably
did more than most to save these
guys.”
The cubs were placed in a make-
shift cardboard nest created by
Natural Resources Department
staff members. The nest included a
used fire crew sleeping bag to keep
the cubs warm and comfortable.
Turnbo drove the cubs to ODFW’s
Corvallis-area wildlife health lab,
where they were temporarily cared
for by veterinary staff, lab biolo-
gists and a fourth-year veterinary
student from the University of
Minnesota, said Wildlife Com-
munications Coordinator Michelle
Dennehy.
The bear cubs were then moved to
the Oregon Zoo on Friday, Feb. 21.
“The zoo can offer the continuous
care the cubs need,” she said.
Oregon Zoo Media and Public Re-
lations Officer Hova Najarian said
the cubs will be picked up by Austin
Zoo & Animal Sanctuary employees
and driven to their new home.
Patti Clark, executive director of
the Austin Zoo, said her facility has
always been a rescue facility and
is home to mostly very young and
older animals. The bears will oc-
cupy an enclosure space that is now
empty after the recent deaths of two
cougars from old age. It includes a
pool and inside dens.
Clark said Austin Zoo employees
have been at the Oregon Zoo since
Sunday, Feb. 23, assisting with the
care and feeding of the bears.
Dirksen, who has more than 20
years experience with timber sales
in the Grand Ronde area, said this
is the first time that he remembers
bear cubs being orphaned by logging
operations, but the situation occurs
annually for wildlife officials.
“ODFW deals with orphaned
bears every year and typically we
place bear cubs two to four times a
year,” Dennehy said. “Cubs can be
orphaned for a variety of reasons,
such as mother is killed … hit by a
car or killed by a hunter although
hunting regulations prohibit kill-
ing sows with cubs. Sometimes we
see people picking up and taking
home young bears or other animals
who they wrongly believe to be
orphaned.”
Dennehy said it is uncommon for
the situation to occur with logging
involved. “But it does occasionally,”
she added.
The Oregon Zoo also is currently
nursing three orphaned cougar
cubs. The zoo’s keepers have cared
for the trio since early January,
when an eastern Oregon hunter
killed their mother.
The cougar cubs will eventually
be sent to the North Carolina Zoo
in Asheboro, N.C.
“ODFW’s staff worked to get the
cougar kittens to the Oregon Zoo
and final placement in North Caro-
lina,” Dennehy said.
Dirksen said the response to the
orphaned bear cubs was exemplary
by all participants. He compliment-
ed the logging crew, which stopped
working once they realized they
had happened upon an occupied
bear den and called it in promptly
to state wildlife officials.
He said the incident is a good
example of state-Tribal cooperation
on the ground, from Tribal staff
assisting understaffed Fish and
Wildlife Department employees to
working with Oregon State Police
for transportation.
“We all know what a softie Kelly
Dirksen is where baby animals are
concerned, but it must have been
quite a sight to see those tree fallers
being so careful of those little cubs,”
said Grand Ronde Public Affairs
Director Siobhan Taylor.
“It speaks to the conservation
awareness of Stimson and their
employees, as well as the intergov-
ernmental cooperation between the
state Department of Fish and Wild-
life, State Police and the Grand
Ronde Tribe. All of them worked
together to properly observe the
situation and save the cubs.” n
Mothers of Tradition training set
The White Bison Mothers of Tradition training is returning to the Con-
federated Tribes of Grand Ronde on May 20-22 at the Tribal Community
Center, 9615 Grand Ronde Road.
The purpose of the training is to increase awareness of how intergenera-
tional trauma interrupted the culture, language, family ties and parenting
practices among Native peoples. Participants will learn how to apply the
cultural teachings to bring healing to children and relationships.
The training is free, but people must register to attend. Attendees must
make a three-day commitment and be there from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
For more information or to register, contact Karan Scharf at 503-879-
2029. Native Americans working in organizations that specialize in
treatment, recovery and wellness should attend, as well as non-Native
professionals working in Native American communities, counselors,
therapists, prevention specialists and community members.
The training is sponsored by the Tribe’s Behavioral Health Program and
funded by the Meth and Suicide Prevention Initiative grant. n