Bear Activity Good

I’m off to a pretty good start with bear photo / trail camera captures this year. On my last hike I rounded a corner on a cart road and there was a bear headed my way. I find it exciting whenever a bear crosses my path.
Trail cameras have been setup in five different areas in north central Massachusetts in attempt of capturing bears. Interesting in one area several female bears with cubs have similar white patches on their chest. One might conclude somewhere in the mix they carry the same genes and their home range overlaps.

Jim

Look who’s in the cabbage patch this week.

This would be the last critter I would have anticipated capturing with this set!

I would doubt very much that this beaver traveled better than a half mile to visit this skunk cabbage patch. My assessment is that this is a two year old beaver that was displaced from the colony to make room for the new born pups. Many assumptions on my part. It appears the beaver is following a small brook in search of a new place to start its own colony.. The brook originates in a swamp that has an established colony of beavers. What the young beaver is going to learn is that it has another half mile to travel before reaching a large body of water. Its route travels through an area that has bobcats and coyotes. Both predators would find this situation as an opportunity for a meal. Hopefully all went well. This is the first time one of my trail cameras has captured a beaver so far away from the safety of water.

Jim

Bears on the Move

I had an opportunity to make a couple of new camera trap sets last weekend. Both sets are on new beaver dams that were located late last winter. What I really like about these two beaver dams is that they are remote and have high potential of bears using them.

The first two bears of the season were captured on my most productive beaver dam year after year. The first bear was only a glimpse of the hind quarter, the bear was moving fast across the dam and the sensor on the TC was pointed to low in front of the camera. I added another small log, raising the camera about five inches.

The second bear was a sow with three second year cubs. The bears crossed the dam walking away from the trail camera. Had they been crossing in the opposite direction, it would have made an incredible video. I added a second trail camera. Let’s hope that the bears use this dam again!

click on my website above below the pic on the cover page to view the sow with three cubs     

Jim

Who’s in the Cabbage Patch!

Over the last several years I have targeted skunk cabbage patches in the spring in hopes of catching a North Central Massachusetts bear feeding. This has been an ongoing goal of mine for many years with no success. Reading a number of American Black Bear books over the winter and putting a bit more thought into WHERE a camera trap should be placed resulted in locating an active skunk cabbage patch. All the bear’s needs were met in this location. Assuming the top of the video is north, here’s what convinced me to set a camera trap in this location. To the north of the camera is a young thick stand of white pines that provided cover. This is where the two bears entered the cabbage patch from. Just a few feet east of the trail camera is a small brook that flows through the skunk cabbage. To the south is an open hardwood ridge that most likely wouldn’t see these bears until fall, when they would be foraging for acorns or beech nuts.
Maybe it was luck, or possibly putting more thought into why I would put a camera in this location, or a combination of both.
It resulted and meeting the goal!

Jim

Snow In May !

Crazy weather for the first week of May. It’s snowing, cold and windy. There’s not much accumulation, but the snow is fluffy enough that is makes the woods look all the same. I’m camera trapping a new area and checking one set during this snow will require using my GPS to locate the trail camera. This area is covered in mountain laurel.

 The activity on this TC has been a bit slow. This new area’s habitat will support everything from a mouse to a moose, so I’ll give it some time. The SD card this week showed a single deer, bobcat and daytime fisher. This is only the third fisher that I have camera trapped during the day. I’m pleased with the catch!

Jim

New Area Camera Trapping Looks Promising !

It amazes me on how many different times this bobcat (assumed it’s the same one) crosses the dam walking away from the camera. It’s not very often this set catches the bobcat walking towards the trail camera. I didn’t check this set with the heavy rain last week, doubtful any wildlife would cross with the volume of water going over the top of the dam and somewhat concerned the trail camera may have been washed away…….

I have been exploring new areas to camera trap. My efforts were rewarded yesterday finding a deer shed. I call this one of nature’s gifts. Not a monster antler by any means but still enjoyable to be bushwhacking and look up and see a shed laying on the ground.

The new area was more than a challenge to navigate with the recent heavy rains. I was surprised to find such an extensive beaver dam.  It’s long and in one spot high. The layout is perfect given the high water level with the stream flowing from the dam. This will act as a barrier (temporary until water recedes) funneling wildlife across this dam.

This new area is home range to a sow with four COYS (cubs of the year). I have set out trail cameras in several locations in hope of capturing a pic/video.

Deer antler , always a neat find when hiking.

• Beaver dam very high in one section. My estimate is the dam is 120' long. I'll bring a range finder to measure next time checking SD cards.

Jim

Trail Camera Check

I set this trail camera out five weeks ago and today was the first time checking SD card. The camera took two thousand  three hundred pictures. I was really surprised no bears crossed the dam in the five week period. With the heavy rains the last month the TC had lots of flowing water.
Beavers , wood ducks .otters, back ends of bobcats and a few deer crossed the beaver dam.

I have a few cameras set out in new locations. A check yesterday didn't result in any new pictures. This morning I learned of a new area that sounds promising. I'll do some bushwhacking next week and check it out.

Jim