It looks like the bears in Ontario and Quebec think the groundhogs got it all wrong. Groundhogs forecast an early spring on Feb. 2 but most eastern bruins are still enjoying their long winter sleep. Since Wiarton Willy, Ontario’s fabled weather-predicting rodent, failed to see his shadow on Groundhog Day, snow has blanketed Eastern Canada. It only recently started to disappear. The lengthy winter is being cited as the reason bears have chosen to roll over and snooze for a couple more weeks, both in the wilderness and at a Montreal zoo. “They’re a little behind schedule,” said Jonathan Luce, curator of mammals and birds at the Montreal Ecomuseum. “It’s interesting. It’s not scary in any way, but it’s different.” Late thaw delays Mother Nature’s wake-up call
Luce said zoo bears, like their wild counterparts, take a wake-up call from the weather to end their annual hibernation. Normally, the bears get up around March 25, give or take a few days. A spokeswoman at the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources said Tuesday that most of the bears in that province also “will be getting up later.” “Our understanding is that the late snow melt over much of Ontario will delay the bears emerging from their dens,” said Jolanta Kowalski. Alberta bears already seem to be up and around. Some have been seen ambling around Banff National Park and there have been reports of tracks near Canmore, Alta.
Bears don’t go into a deep sleep like rodents, who are completely out during the winter. Bears occasionally get up in winter. “In the middle of winter, if you get two or three nice days in a row, you could have bears walking around,” Luce said. “They’re not active, looking for food, since their food sources are virtually impossible to find. A lot of their diet is based on berries and vegetation.” The bears pig out in the summer and live off their fat in the winter. They begin to slow down in the fall and nod off in December.A black bear can go for 100 days without drinking, eating, exercising or doing much else.
Light and warmer temperatures usually wake up the bears.“This year the beginning of spring was colder than usual so I think temperature has just pushed them back, despite the longer days,” Luce said. Long winter not affecting most hibernating animals.
Other creatures, such as raccoons, amphibians and reptiles, seem to be waking up on schedule. “They’re more food-motivated,” Luce said.
Bears in the wild that have roused themselves likely woke up because they are peckish. “If they weren’t quite as well prepared, if they’re a little bit more hungry, then they’re probably going to be getting up earlier so they can start looking for food,” Luce said.
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Black Bear hunting in Quebec
