Flattail Family Adventures: Field Ecology 101--Part 1

As part of our summer homeschool program (our poor children just don't get a break, do they?), we joined forces with BYU professor Hal Black and his former graduate student Josh Heward to participate in a bear trapping study in the Book Cliffs of east-central Utah the week of June 26-30. Kevin made arrangements to teach in person Tuesday to his students at Provo College on the way (he usually broadcasts to them from Brigham City), and he pre-recorded his Thursday lectures so that he could come along. While waiting for Dad, the rest of the family visited the Monte L. Bean Life Science Museum on BYU campus and took a look at some stuffed black bears as well as all the other animals.

We drove out after Kevin's lectures, arriving at the top of Pine Springs Canyon around 1:00 AM where we decided to spend the night--we didn't want to wake the others. Early the following morning, around 5:00 AM, we awoke and couldn't go back to sleep so we drove down to the DeLambert's ranch where Hal was renting their guest cabin. On the drive, we startled a nice bull elk in a meadow and found a small herd of elk cows and calves.

Home Base, the DeLambert's Ranch, Main Canyon

We set up our family tent near the cabin. The cabin was equipped with a gas stove, refrigerator, sink, and bathroom--luxury compared to what we used to have when we lived in South Canyon 14 years ago while trapping bears for the summer (in those days we had to use the hillside as our bathroom). In front of the cabin was a large pond teaming with birds such as red-winged blackbirds, coots, swallows, some killdeer, and a great blue heron. It also had a healthy population of tiger salamanders and leopard frogs (more on that subject later).

The Traps

The traps consist of two 55-gallon barrels welded together with a heavy-duty metal screen on one end and a sliding door on the other, held up by a rod. (side note: April actually helped build these traps back in 1992--she cut the screens using a plasma arc.) A bag with gumballs and licorice pieces is attached to the trigger mechanism (slightly visible in the photo on the lower right). When the bear pulls on the candy bag, the rod slides out, and the door falls down, trapping the bear inside. We also throw a chunk of rotten meat into the back to attract the bear to the site, and we place a stick of peanut butter halfway into the trap. Megan and Ian were the perfect size for helping set traps. They could easily crawl right to the back to hang the candy bag.

The Bait

Kevin says it's unfortunate that smells are not transmissible online because it is difficult to appreciate the full effect of the maggot-laden, putrid, foul substance that once was a cow. This is used to attract the bears to the traps. However, they rarely eat it--even a bear has limits. The photos below show us removing the bait from the barrel and cutting it into smaller pieces before putting it in a cooler on the back of the 4-wheelers for transportation to the traps.

The Four-Wheelers

Ian's favorite part was riding on the four-wheelers. We used them to haul the traps to the sites and also to check the traps on subsequent days. Erin didn't enjoy riding them as much because they were "too fast." She preferred to ride in the bear truck.