Kicking Bear
in the northern maine woods
Photos & Text by Ken Lamb
I had the privilege to participate and photograph
a winter field trip, visiting a black bear den. A
group of kids from Maine’s Kicking Bear Program
and I joined Maine’s Black Bear Research Team
lead by Biologist Randy Cross on their annual
winter monitoring program.
The 30+ year state program has been a major
asset in monitoring and managing the state’s
bear population, numbering greater than 27,000
animals.
Collared female bears are located by plane in
the early winter, and the bear’s den location is
documented on maps, allowing Randy’s crew to
relocate the bears by snowmobile and by foot.
16 Kicking Bear WINTER 2012
This Page: The crew travels into the general area by
snowmobile attempting