Black Bear Video

It's getting to be that time of year again! Baby animals, including bear cubs, will soon be emerging and attracting photographers and onlookers alike.

I shot this series over the summer last year and waited to post it for a couple of reasons. First, it took a while to edit the clips and create the entire video. Second, and more importantly, I didn't want to draw any more attention to the bears. As a photographer who is continually building an online audience, I understand the desire for likes, comments, and overall traffic on my page. However, I have learned how this can draw crowds and ultimately, create a bad situation for the wildlife. I now wait to post content of unique and sensitive subjects until they have moved on, and unless there's a defining feature in the image, I don't give a location - if asked, I'll usually say it was "In the woods".

So remember, it's OK to be selfish and keep unique opportunities to yourself and still get the 'likes' when you post after the fact, and it might help prevent a dangerous and potentially tragic situation for both the animals and the observers.

Thank you for following, and please enjoy the bear cubs play fighting...

Colin

My First Book - "Seasons of the Nature Center"

Hello Friends,

I have a couple of big announcements...

First, I have lived and worked at the Eagle River Nature Center in Alaska since October of 2014, serving as a resident volunteer and later, Assistant Operations Manager. What was supposed to be a winter stay turned into nearly a decade of residence. I could not ask for a better place to reside, work, and grow as an artist. The staff has been very supportive of my career and more than understanding of my travel schedule in recent years, which allowed me to develop a successful international photo tour company with my good friend and colleague, Mike Haring. Next year's schedule looks to be even busier as we continue to add new destinations to the Nat Expo Tours itinerary, and other opportunities are presenting themselves as well, so it is with bittersweet emotions that I will be departing from my home and position at the Nature Center after April 2023.

Next, as a tribute to this place I have called home for more than eight years, I have embarked on one of the most ambitious and exciting projects of my career thus far - my first book!

"Seasons of the Nature Center, A Photographic Journey of Seasonal Transitions at the Eagle River Nature Center” will comprise more than 100 pages of my favorite photos in a 9x12" limited-edition coffee table book. I am doing much of the design and text in collaboration with a local publisher, with contributions from two very talented Alaskan authors. The foreword was written by New York Times Bestselling Author, Kaylene Johnson-Sullivan, author of "Canyons and Ice, The Wilderness Travels of Dick Griffith." My bio was written by Chris Forbes Lundgren (Alaska Adventure Books), author of "Accidental Adventures Alaska, True Tales of Ordinary People Facing Danger in the Wilderness."

With that being said, I would also like to announce that you can help fund this project and pre-order a signed copy of "Seasons of the Nature Center" today! I am now taking orders ($30 for the book + $10 shipping): https://www.colintyler.com/online-store/seasons-of-the-nature-center-book

I will have the books in hand by spring/early summer 2023 and send them out at that time.

Thank you for following along, supporting my journeys, and helping to make this dream project a reality!


Colin  

 

The cover of my upcoming book, now available for pre-purchase…

Black Bears & Cottonwood Trees

Cottonwood trees are popular with black bears - not only do cubs easily ascend them but the adults are proficient climbers as well, often reaching heights of 50 feet or more to strip and eat the seeds in late spring & early summer. With all the cotton releasing in the breeze right now, it looks like this source of nutrition will soon be gone for the season...

Colin

Black bear cub in a cottonwood tree, Alaska.

Black bear cub in a cottonwood tree, Alaska.

COY - "Cub of the Year"

Hello everyone! I'm happy to have something new to share today - a black bear COY or "Cub of the Year." This tiny little bear and its sibling were showing off their innate climbing skills while their mother was grazing on vegetation right below them. Black bears retain their ability to scale large trees into adulthood, serving as a method of escape from larger and dominant brown (grizzly) bears as well as a means to feed on cottonwood seeds in the spring.

Colin

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Hiding Among the Grasses

With the wild grasses and flowers reaching their peak seasonal growth, it's easy for large mammals to remain hidden from sight at close proximity. I took this yesterday morning as the sow black bear was grazing next to the trail. The cubs aren't yet tall enough to spot when they're on the ground so I watch for moving vegetation to monitor their whereabouts.

Colin

Black Bear, Eagle River Nature Center, Alaska

Black Bear, Eagle River Nature Center, Alaska

The Day the Branches Won

May 28, 2020, the day the branches won. As Homer Simpson would say: “D’oh!” There’s nothing like having a great photo line up for you, only to have a stray piece of vegetation get in your way at the perfect moment. These photos were taken within minutes of each other – a great horned owl perched almost eye-level with a branch directly across its face and a black bear cub riding on mom’s back just as they stepped behind a wild rose plant. It wasn’t the first time, nor will it be the last, and it makes those long-sought “perfect moments” that much more rewarding.

Have a great day out there thank you for following along!

Colin

Great Horned Owl, Eagle River Nature Center, Alaska

Great Horned Owl, Eagle River Nature Center, Alaska

Black Bear Sow and Cubs, Eagle River Nature Center, Alaska

Black Bear Sow and Cubs, Eagle River Nature Center, Alaska

Mountaintop Black Bear

Here's an aerial view of an obviously well-fed black bear eating berries at around 3,000 feet during my flight through Eagle River Valley last week. This was one of about a dozen black bears that we saw high on the slopes grazing on autumn berries. Black bears are typically forest-dwelling creatures but with brown/grizzly bears roaming the lower reaches of the valley in search of salmon, they may be seeking the safety and food supply of the higher elevations.

Colin

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Treetop Dining

Here is something you don't see every day - a large black bear 50 feet up a tree eating cottonwood seeds. Black bears are excellent climbers and have claws designed for this as compared to their grizzly cousins, who are more adapt at digging than climbing. Still, it always amazes me to see an animal that is several hundred pounds appear so at ease in a treetop.

Spring in the Valley

Hello and happy Monday, friends! Seems I’ve been wrapped up in some major spring-cleaning and other demanding projects and haven’t posted in a while. In that time, Eagle River Valley has gone from showing the last traces of winter to an explosion of color and wildlife. I’ve been getting out for brief hikes here & there and to catch the last bit of late evening light, but yesterday I met up with a friend and went for a nice 9-mile trek. I was fortunate enough to capture a rare, white calypso orchid while it was still in bloom, spot a couple of black bears, and witness many signs of the oncoming season. The sun is now setting after 11 pm and the valley is full of life.  I look forward to chasing more light during the long days ahead.

Colin

 

 

Little Climber

Black bears are excellent climbers; you might even say that cubs have "squirrel-like" agility, which serves as an escape mechanism when there is perceived danger. If you compare the claws of a black bear to those of a brown/grizzly bear, the difference is easy to spot, making it apparent how black bears are suited for climbing trees while grizzlies have claws designed for digging.