BY JONATHAN CASIANO

Star-Ledger Staff

 Sunday, July 17, 2005

 

With all the terrifying tales of black bears rampaging through campsites and rummaging through trash cans, it might come as a surprise that the fearsome brutes go absolutely gaga over green seedless grapes.

It might also come as a shock to some that the lumbering beasts of New Jersey's woodlands will flop down and cry like babies if a paw gets cut.

These are just two of the many surprises zookeepers at Essex County Turtle Back Zoo have discovered since they began caring for two black bear cubs last month. Born in January to a pair of bears as Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, the 7-month-old twin sisters have drawn raves from children and parents alike, who press up against the exhibit's glass windows for a better look at the playful cubs.

Kids squeal when the bears mosey over to a window in search of food and giggle when the siblings tussle over a favorite rock or stump. They describe the bears as "cute" and "cuddly," with some even suggesting they might make good pets.

"They're black and friendly and they eat really good," said 11-year-old Johnny Orr of Elizabeth during a visit to the zoo last week. "I think they're very nice."

But while the cubs may look adorable when shimmying up a tree or chasing a red fox out of his hole, keepers say the 35-pound furballs have proven to be quite a handful.

"We now fully understand why people give them food and then get bit by them because one minute they're nice and the next minute they're bears," said zoo Supervisor Gina Zullo.

Zullo says that unpredictability has been the most challenging part about working with the cubs, noting that they can go from friendly to ferocious in a split second. Keepers already set out the bears' meals before bringing them inside, and soon the keepers will stop entering the exhibit altogether.

Zoo Director Jeremy Goodman said his staff has also been blown away by the bears' power and resiliency. Like fur-covered cannonballs, Goodman said the cubs fall out of trees and walk it off like nothing.

"They're little tanks," Goodman said.

Bill Rives, director of the safari at Six Flags Great Adventure, said the strength and unpredictability of bears are two of their most notable qualities. Whereas lions and tigers stalk their prey, bears might just be "plodding along" and suddenly lash out, making them one of the most dangerous animals to deal with in the zoo.

"Bears really have no fear of anything," Rives said. "They'll be a great show, but you just can't trust them."

And he should know. With 17 black bears in the safari, Great Adventure has more black bears than any zoo on the East Coast. The park raises bears from infancy to old age and is currently working with the Department of Environmental Protection to test different contraception methods as a way to control the state's wild bear population.

Turtle Back's two cubs were actually born under his watch to a 250-pound female named Cornerbear and an enormous 500 pound papa named Big Ear Little Ear. The cubs were going to stay at Great Adventure, too, until Cornerbear abruptly stopped nursing them, forcing zookeepers to remove the cubs from the exhibit.

The move prompted a call to Goodman, who had been scouring the country for cubs to fill Turtle Back's already completed exhibit. In June, Rives reluctantly handed over the cubs.

"I wasn't going to loan out any bears, but after we pulled them away from the mom, it would have been very difficult to mix them back in with 17 other bears," Rives said.

While Rives was sad to see them go, Essex County was absolutely thrilled, sending a team of county officials to pick up the cubs and bring them back.

Since their arrival, Goodman said, the bears have been a huge hit, drawing visitors from around the state and sparking a revival at Turtle Back.

"The kids absolutely love them," Zullo said.

All they're missing, now, are names. In June, the zoo launched a bear-naming contest and county officials have since received hundreds of suggestions. Now, it's up to Star-Ledger readers to choose the winning pair.

Readers can clip out the coupon in today's paper and mail it in, or visit www.nj.com to cast a vote. The voting will run for two weeks with the results announced in The Star-Ledger on July 31. The most popular names will be bestowed upon the cubs at a naming ceremony Aug. 1.