BACK FOR SECONDS: Resident adult female black bear Zoe with three, 20-month-old yearlings on Blackcomb Mountain. Zoe, for some reason, decided to keep her offspring through the second spring breeding period (June-July) when normally she would have pushed them away so she could begin another breeding cycle. Mothers typically break-up from cubs after 17-19 months. Zoe is the second mother bear (Katie was the first in 1997-99) in 14 years to keep offspring through their second year. The yearlings have the advantage (not to disperse this year) of continued knowledge and use of mother's feeding areas. Bear activity is concentrated in the valley as berry feeding continues with a gradual move upslope into mid-mountain berry habitats during mid-August. The most important berry crop at higher eleavtions (> 1,200 metres) is about two weeks away from ripening.
