Bird Cams Around the World

How sad for little Jason. I have been watching them this year for several hours a day, not just quick check in and go's. I noticed his cries long before now. I wondered why he kept sitting his rump down after walking and crying way back into early last week. I think his cries were for pain, maybe he was hurt, maybe his leg or foot was hurt. And if not, at least I noticed it sounded like he was crying in pain somewhere, and unable to keep up. I was going to post and ask if anyone else thought so, but decided not to, rather than be a worry wart once again. And I am NOT a biologist. What would a biologist have thought then? Someone who knows more than me about bears? Someone watching bears for 40 years? Would they have noticed? I think they did. They were aware. "We know you are all concerned about Jason....." they posted to that effect. Anyone else watching for several hours at a time, could see it. I even clicked out several times during the past week because I could not listen to his cries for such long time periods. Years ago, my outside cat brought in a mole that it had attacked. The mole was suffering, and death was inevitable, the mole was seizing repeatedly. I could not watch it suffer, so I forced myself to end its suffering immediately. That was a mole. I cant imagine what it must feel like to be a biologist who can see this sweet cub mammal suffer, know it is going to die, and leave it. But then make sure to come back in time to watch it take its last breath, and THEN get a permit to take its dead body. If I came upon a cub or any mammal near death, or hurt and crying, ALONE, I would take it to be put down before I would leave it to suffer so much pain, not understanding what is happening to itself. You have to be pretty cold to do that. But I guess thats what it takes to be a "scientist". I will no longer buy anything from their site, and will not give any donations. Time after time it shows they wont do anything to rehab or even put a bear out of its misery. All their efforts go to "research" and the continuation of them "going out in the field" are self-serving. I mean afterall, these are the bears they are telling other people - and quite loudly - not to shoot, but they leave one dying to suffer? The only reason they helped Hope along was because so many people squawked. I will not support them or their actions any longer. And I know my view wont be popular here, so I wont be reading replies or post again.

carly and skygirlblue

LeeLee - I, like you, am just sick over this. This whole issue is hard.

Quite frankly, once they went out to the den to fix the den cam Hope had licked, I saw an immediate change in Lily & Hope's behavior and it bothered me. Prior to their first visit, Lily and Hope had not once left the den. After that, they were out every day. Could this have contributed to this tragedy? I also wonder if the bears that were not "disturbed" are still in den, but we haven't gotten any update on them. We know the den flooded, I think over the weekend, but would those few extra days have made a difference?

I'm torn here with Jason because I also thought something was going on when he wouldn't follow them. Based on the update after the first big move to the white pine, and then looking at the video of Jason being so exhausted, it just reinforced there was something wrong. I will be interested to find out if it was malnourishment, or if it was something else. Either way, I'm sorry for his loss and suffering. I already had panic over what would happen when family break-up occurs and he's on his own. How long would he survive with hunters around? Just makes me sick...

I think there is a lot of pressure from all sides. My guess is they received harsh criticism from govt agencies and other research groups after helping Hope last year. Of course, we viewers wanted them to help. I think about all the publicity and letters written to state/govt officials about protecting these radio collared bears and I don't think there's been a legislative change and honestly, don't think there will be.

The really sad thing here... when I see tragedy happen, it really turns me off to watching these cams because I get so emotionally attached and my heart just breaks. I don't want to see anyone/anything suffer. I've broadened my appreciation for another species, but at the same time, feel heartache and sorrow.

I am completely heart broken. I really believe that Jason should have been checked on. By April 8 they knew something was not right with him. They intervened with Hope but not with Jason. This makes me so angry. On the 12 they knew he was dying & SUFFERING, Why not take him & put him out of his pain. I seriously don't think I'll be watching again. All for the sake of research, lets see how he dies.
MY favourites of Jason that I took

My faves that they took

Pat - Those are beautiful pics...

Makes me cry all over again, especially the last few of him....

Looking at all these pictues, have me thinking.."What If" question here... What if they had not helped Hope and she didn't make it. Lily went off, bred and had two cubs. If malnourishment is found to be the cause, would Jason be here today if they had not helped Hope along? Was that why Lily didn't want to nurse Hope and started getting irritated with her, because she knew her young cubs were lacking and Hope was taking too much. Maybe "mixed age" litters don't really work when the older cub still nurses like Hope is doing.

Is this some type of cosmic natural balance and we are paying today for what was done last year. Scary for me to think about this and all the more heartbreaking.

Skygirlblue - I was composing my post when you posted and didn't see your response, but you bring up VERY good points/questions. I also think there's a double standard.

I was having a discussion with my husband last night, prior to reading about Jason and we were discussing about man's interference in nature, specifically when and how much do we interfere? I don't think there is any clear answer and each of us has our own "take".

Maybe the way they look at it is: If we didn't have cams at these locations and they were on the side of a cliff at a "natural" scrape and there wasn't enough food, would we even know there was a failure to thrive or of one being ill?

If a bird gets caught in power lines, put up by man, maybe because it's in front of our faces, and we are partially responsible, we should try to help? What would be the likelihood that the bird would get caught up if those wires were not there? Then I think about if we did help and the bird could no longer fly, what kind of life does it have just sitting in a cage/aviary? (I say that after having a cockatiel for 17 years and realizing in the last few years after watching peregrines, how sad and unfair it was that Piper was never able to truly fly free".)

Now this is interesting...not in a good way.

http://www.northlandsnewscenter.com/new ... 69524.html

Jason the Bear Dies; DNR And Researchers At Odds
April 13, 2011

Updated Apr 13, 2011 at 2:27 PM CDT

Ely, MN (Northland's NewsCenter) - Jason, a three month old bear cub that had gained international attention after his birth was broadcast on a web-cam set up by the North American Bear Center, has died. Jason was the cub of Lily the Black Bear.

Lily and her bear cubs left their den about two weeks ago, and bear researchers noticed that Jason was becoming weaker as the days passed. Researchers speculate that sharing milk with Lily's other cubs might not have left him with enough milk for full development. Jason died on Tuesday afternoon.

Today, the DNR claimed the young cub, and according to Bear Center researchers, are no longer allowing the researchers access to the cub.

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Wonder why the DNR won't allow them to do an autopsy?

Bet this will have an impact on research permit next year...

I just found out about Jason and read all of the posts here.

This has caused much heartache and I'm sorry.

I do have one thought to add and it's about human intervention. These animals live in a world greatly impacted by human intervention; loss of habitat, degraded food supply which results in competition for nest sites, illness, stress. But we can't intervene to stop suffering?
Spiritually, that doesn't make sense to me.

To all of you that cared so much, I am sorry that you have to experience this loss.