Torie Hilley. Follow the Leader.
Mothers and cubs are constantly on the lookout for male bears that will kill the cubs to mate with the mother to pass on his own genes. To see a bear cub is special, but to see THREE with one mother is extra special. I had the privilege to encounter these three little ones in Lake Clark.
While with a professional bear guide, I followed them with their mother on the mudflats as they dug for clams, hoping to catch them in a line. For several days, I trudged through the thick, sticky mud in hopes for this shot. On the last day, I saw the cubs start to line up. I dropped to one knee into the mud and hovered my massive lens over the mudflat to blur out the foreground, creating an other-worldly feel. Patience can pay off, and I was thrilled to capture this behavior, especially with all three in-step with one another.
Back home and ecstatic to have achieved my goal, I unfortunately heard that all three cubs didn’t survive the upcoming weeks. Heartbroken to hear this, it reminded me to never take anything for granted and to enjoy nature’s beauty as much as possible in that moment because you never know what happens next.
Torie Hilley is originally a predator researcher in Southern Africa that now uses her background in behavioral ecology to bring more awareness of endangered species, their unique behavior, and human-wildlife connectedness through her oil paintings and photography.
Follow Torie on Instagram @torie_hilley_fineart.
