Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Watch out for Bears: The Zoo's Live Bear Cam is Back

The Woodland Park Zoo's "Bear Cam" is back online after being downed in winter storms. It's sponsored by Brown Bear Carwash. Visit it online and watch the big boys delight in the fresh scents of elk dung, or even catch a trout.

The 12-year old 800+ pound grizzly brothers are, according to the Zoo, "'scatter fed' produce and favorite food items throughout the exhibit each morning and again later in the day; providing new stumps, logs, props and other natural items in the exhibit also introduces new sights and smells to stimulate the bears’ senses. Keepers place browse (branches and leaves) in the exhibit and grasses for the bears to consume. They will also lace the exhibit with novel scents such as elk dung and spices to stimulate their olfactory sense. During the warmer times of the year, the bears are provided overnight access to their exhibit, providing them full use of all available areas to better accommodate any need they have to move about their environment. Exhibit featuresVarious artificial elements including rockwork, a stream and deep pool that maintains 20-30 live trout, many that have lived in the pool for several years. The bears actively “fish” for the trout, occasionally teaming up to corral and capture the trout."

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