You might not think they were being lazy, seeing these Wild Enclosure #1 cubs out in what was left of the snow.
The cubs were up and about at midnight, although most of their snow had disappeared.
But the cubs are definitely in a slow-down mode, as we see in this sequence of photos of the Rainbow Triplets.
The Triplets were out early, but one was on the platform and a second one was standing up in the middle of a tire on the Tire Bridge.That Triplet climbed up through the tier toward the platform. We’re surprised that he/she fit!Two of the three are on the platform; the third one is at the base of a tree.At 7:30 in the morning, that one Triplet is still snoozing at the base of the tree while the others are snoozing on the platform.At 7:38, the Triplet is still asleep at the base of the tree.8:00 am and the Triplet is still asleep and the other two are still asleep up above. We can’t help but wonder if the cubs in Enclosure #1 (Peanut Gallery) are watching and wondering why the Triplets are so lazy.The third cub moved, and all three Triplets are together on the platform, still sleeping at 11:30 am!
As we have mentioned before, bears in the wild, like our cubs, are slowing down and doing more resting and sleeping now, since winter and hibernation are just around the corner. Last winter we had a few yearling bears who had to spend the winter at ABR before returning to their wild habitats. They became very lethargic, and even spent a good bit of time in the straw-filled Acclimation Pen, doing some serious sleeping. This year’s cubs probably won’t be with us for that long, but we will undoubtedly see more of a slowdown in the coming days and weeks. Stay tuned.
