It’s been an interesting few days for recently emancipated bear 128jr in Katmai National Park. It appears that she is being accepted by 806 and her coy. This might be a third adoption at the park if they stick together.
128jr, 2.5 years old, was emancipated by her mother 128 Grazer earlier this year. On July 3 128jr was spotted hanging out with 806 and her spring cub on the explore.org Brooks Falls associated live feeds hosted on YouTube. On July 4 they were still hanging out, the above screenshot is from the explore.org live feed on July 4. Additionally there is a witness report that 128jr was seen nursing from 806, if that is confirmed it is highly unusual and has been seen in the past as a sign that the cub is considered adopted.
Historically , There have been at least two other cases of bear adoptions at the park. In 2014 bear 435 Holly adopted 503 after he was emancipated as a yearling when his mother 402 went into estrus. More recently, in 2023, 910 adopted her sister 909’s emancipated cub (now numbered 609) and raised her for two summers with her own cub (now numbered 620). The two families had played together before the adoption so, the familiarity with each other probably made 910 more open to the arrangement has been my theory.
Now I’m amazed all over again watching 806. I just love watching these bears and how they interact with each other. I keep being surprised in some of the best ways.