Been waiting years for this bear picture!

When we first came to Pennsylvania, I read somewhere that the emerging skunk cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus) was a favorite food of black bears when they first come out of hibernation in spring. I’d found plenty of mangled plants (see below) but never actually seen a bear feasting.

Finally, here’s a picture of a black bear actually eating skunk cabbage by the little creek alongside our garden. Thank you judy.

Her two cubs (not much bigger than our cats) were scampering around, not really paying much attention, the way kids do, while she munched on the emerging foliage. In the past I’ve seen plants pulled up and the fat roots eaten but this bear concentrated on the emerging unrolling leaves – it’s like she bit the heart out of a cabbage.

Our streamside display of “the American hosta” is going to be a little ragged this summer – but who cares! It was a treat to see – from a distance, with a long lens, of course.

You may have noticed I've posted about skunk cabbage before - here, and here.

Comments

[Jen]

Oh wow! I'll bet that does feel good if you waited for years to snap a pic of it. And right by your garden?! That's amazing. She's gorgeous.
Matt and I used to live in Hawley, PA for a short time. It's beyond beautiful up there. -Jen :)

[Digger]

You are so fortunate to have bears living so close by, but is it not dangerous to go out into the garden? maybe a bear will be hiding behind a tree or something

[judywhite]

Digger, Graham and I have learned after living with bears now for the past 8 years that they are basically shy creatures that don't want trouble, and either retreat if they see you, or try to ignore you (while keeping an eye on just where you are). They regularly climb onto our deck to get the bird feeders, but climb down docilely as soon as we yell. Even mothers with cubs are pretty tolerant as long as we don't get too close. (My own mother, when she visits, makes sure to wear a whistle when she goes out walking, for the bears hate the sound of it.)

We are very aware they are wild and dangerous animals, and respect their boundaries, and feel it a great privilege to be able to live among them in an area where there is still enough habitat to support them. Habitat, sadly, that keeps diminishing even as I type.

[Graham Rice]

Yes, judy, exactly... and I'm also conscious of the fact that in Britain bears have long been extinct. I'd always thought they died out in about 1450 - but I just checked and in fact they became extinct in the 10th century as a result of habitat destruction and hunting. So it really is a privilege to see them here in Pennsylvania.

[Digger]

Bears are beautiful animals and it is a shame that they are losing their habitat, we have lost so many things due to man's activity, i have only ever seen a bear at the zoo.

[Graham Rice]

Actually, Digger, in our area, at least, black bears are doing OK at the moment - in spite of two, three-day hunting seasons in the fall.

[Digger]

That's encouraging that they are doing so well, but it's sad that people still feel the need to hunt them down, is there a specific reason for hunting them or is it just awful people with blood lust?

[Graham Rice]

It's not really "awful people with blood lust", it's just that the culture here is so different... it's difficult to comprehend, in a way, but hunting deer, turkeys, bear is part of the rural way of life. There's not much hunting with dogs, but shooting, even with a bow-and-arrow or old fashioned musket, is very common and widely considered as normal as fishing is in Britain. And carefully regulated. I'm still not really used to it, I must say...