FOREST FALLS, CA — Two orphaned black bear cubs have been given a second chance at life after they were rescued last week by state wildlife authorities.
Officials with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife received a call July 3 that a dead bear had been found on a residential property in Forest Falls abutting San Bernardino National Forest. When they arrived at the home, they saw the bear was lactating and, later that day, heard two cubs calling back and forth to each other.
“They’re incredibly small,” said human-wildlife conflict biologist Kevin Howells, who noted the cubs weighed no more than 15 pounds each and would have been prey to coyotes, bobcats and other animals in the wild. “There really was no chance of survival on their own.”
Find out what's happening in Banning-Beaumontwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Authorities aren’t sure how the mother died, according to Howell, who said she had been dead for two days before the body was reported and it had been scavenged and was decomposed.
Officials left the mother’s body in place for a few more days, hoping the cubs would stay nearby, and, on July 4, they were able to capture one of the siblings. The second was more evasive, but after receiving reports for several days of the young bear in trees and eating fruit, officials trapped the cub Friday.
Find out what's happening in Banning-Beaumontwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
The siblings were taken to Project Wildlife’s Ramona Campus, where they will be rehabilitated with as little human contact as possible, and be tagged and returned to the forest next spring with GPS collars.
“They’re getting on quite well,” Howell said.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
Click Here: Liverpool soccer tracksuit