MOMMA BLACK BEAR DEFENDS TRIPLETS FROM MUCH LARGER BROWN BEAR
WITH PIX AND VID
BY SHUK YEE TSANG
A mother black bear fiercely defended her three tiny cubs when a much larger brown bear wandered into their territory during a salmon run.
Jon Rayeski, 45, an industrial designer from Colorado, USA, captured the dramatic encounter at Anan, Alaska, after previously visiting the area several times to observe its bears.
The footage shows Osso, a female black bear, keeping watch over her triplets before springing into action when a large brown bear called Scuba Sue, who moved into the area and one of her cubs scrambled up a tree for safety.
Despite being considerably smaller than the brown bear, Osso fearlessly confronted the much larger animal, putting herself between the intruder and her vulnerable cubs.
The late salmon run also meant Osso had to spend long periods trying to catch fish, leaving her cubs particularly vulnerable while she was away.
Jon said the brown bear in the footage was "Scuba Sue", a well-known local bear famous for diving completely underwater for around 30 seconds at a time to catch fish.
Jon said: "The moment was an extreme mix of emotions from calm and joy while seeing the cubs nurse to extreme tension as the brown bear moved into the area in search of salmon.
"Bears are solitary by nature, so seeing these dynamics take place in front of you at a concentrated food source is never boring.
"Having been to this location three times before for a week each time and places like Katmai National Park, seeing these types of interactions can unfold right in front of you allows people to see the challenging lives these bears face to survive and raise cubs.
"Triplet black bear cubs are something more rare and seeing them nurse so close is on a whole other level."
"Osso is a well known black bear in the area and we had heard about her having triplet cubs of the year.
"We certainly didn't expect to see them like this and it was a real gift.
"Raising three cubs is a challenging task for a bear, especially in such a dense bear population.
"We got to witness her sending her cubs up trees for their protection when other bears were in the area or when she needed to go fish for salmon.
" shows the dynamics that happen when you have that high-concentration food source combined with animals that are mostly solitary.
"Lots for them to navigate to survive."
Viewers were captivated by the dramatic encounter, with one commenter writing: "Never mess with a Mom."
Another viewer said: "I'm so relieved Osso triumphed!"
Jon added: "Happy to share this special peek into the challenging lives of wild bears.
"It's such a gift to be able to witness nature like this."
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