Saplings in Enclosure #4

Posted on   April 16, 2020
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Category  :  Bear Feature Stories & Photos

The saplings in Wild Enclosure #4 are in trouble. Beignet and Jessamine are out to get them! And when two yearling bears gang up on a sapling, the poor little tree doesn’t stand a chance.

Jessamine starts out foraging innocently.
Beignet is foraging for her breakfast, as well.
They come together by an unsuspecting sapling.
Beignet attacks the sapling.
Beignet pulls the sapling down toward her.
Jessamine comes to see what is going on.
Jessamine snatches the sapling away from Beignet.
Jessamine stretches up to grab the sapling and bend it down.

We have observed many bear cubs and yearlings play in this way, bending (murdalizing) saplings. At the end of a season, there are very few, if any saplings that have escaped the bears’ destructive tendencies. Luckily, they do recover and grow back, along with others, so we have a never-ending supply for each group of cubs and yearlings to murdalize.