Words Like Locusts Flew From Her Fingers

North American Bear Center

The North American Bear Center has really updated and expanded their web site. It’s well worth a visit. There are lots of photos and a live “bearcam” that will be much more interesting when the bears come out of hibernation this spring. There’s also information on becoming a member — which is something I strongly recommend.

The Bear Center is up in Ely, Minnesota. The people who run it are really committed to understanding and protecting bears and they’ve been doing amazing research for years — long before the actual Bear Center was ever even conceived. Besides hunting, one of the biggest problems bears run into is humans who are unnecessarily afraid of them. Black bears truly aren’t at all the scary killers of the forest a lot of people take them for. And I’m not just saying that because I’m a tree-hugger. I’ve actually met wild black bears and have touched them and spoken to them. In lots of ways, black bears remind me of squirrels — in their behavior and what they eat. Really BIG squirrels.

Anyway, you can learn more for yourself by visiting the Bear Center’s web site (link above). In the meanwhile, check out this really great video from the site.