Brown Bear Sow and Cub Interacting, Katmai
Katmai National Park and Preserve
A brown bear sow stands in an open meadow while her cub reaches up toward her face. Cubs stay with their mother for two to three years in Katmai and these close physical interactions (nursing, play, grooming, and low-level discipline) go on constantly through the summer. A lot of what the cubs need to survive their first solo year is learned right here.
Watching a family group in Katmai is one of the more grounding wildlife experiences available in North America. The bears are not tame, but they are used to humans and you get to see normal behavior rather than flight response.
Brown bear sow and cub, Katmai National Park and Preserve, Alaska. Ursus arctos. Photo © copyright by Carl Donohue.