Dr. Rogers will give a presentation on April 7 at Pequot Lakes Middle School starting at 9 a.m., and at Eagle View Elementary School starting at 12:30 p.m. On April 8 he will be at Paul Bunyan Nature Center at 1 p.m. and at Cragun's Resort at 7 p.m.

His work has reached millions of people worldwide through scientific publications, children's books, popular magazines, radio and television appearances, and recently, the Animal Planet Documentary, "The Man Who Walks With Bears."

Using airplanes, vehicles, and snowshoes, he radio tracked over 100 bears for up to 22 years. He formed relationships with some of the bears, including mothers and cubs, and spent 24-hour periods walking and resting with them in the forest of Minnesota. He has detailed the bears' activities, diet, ecology, social organization, vocalizations, and more.

Last summer, four sons and their fathers visited Dr. Rogers and walked the woods with him, visiting the black bears. One of the fathers, Bruce Billington, said it was an experience none of them will ever forget.

"Dr. Rogers is great," Billington said.

Bears have been unfairly demonized for centuries, and the misconceptions are literally killing them. The biggest problem bears face around the world is people moving into bear habitat and killing the bears out of exaggerated fear.

The Wildlife Research Institute is working with Rogers and the North American Bear Center to dispel the myths.

To expand this effort, the North American Bear Center is building an educational facility near Ely to reach tourists and be a worldwide clearinghouse for authoritative bear information. Public education is the key to coexistence. The NABC will also rehabilitate injured and orphaned bears and return them to the wild. The NABC is a volunteer, 501 © (3) non-profit organization. Contributions are tax deductible.

To learn more about black bears and Dr. Lynn Rogers see www.bearstudy.org.

To contact Dr. Rogers, lrogers@bearstudy.org or218-365-4480.

The typical year for black bears in northern Minnesota by Dr. Lynn Rogers

January: The bear moon. Cubs are born. Mother licks them clean, keeps them warm and moves into positions for easy nursing.

February: Hibernation and care of cubs continues.

March: Testosterone levels of adult males begins to rise.

April: Snow melts. Bears emerge from dens (adult males first, mothers with cubs last). Food very scarce. Adult males begin to roam. Most others remain lethargic, eating mainly aspen catkins and willow catkins. All bears lose weight.

May: Greenup. Lethargy ends. Bears eating sprouting grass, emerging herbs and expanding aspen leaves. Cubs tasting what mother eats, but ingesting little except milk. Lactating mothers losing weight, others gaining weight slowly.

June: Green plants becoming mature and mostly unpalatable. Ant pupae becoming abundant. Bears switch to diet of ant pupae. Mating season. Males roam widely to find females without cubs. Cubs begin eating solid food. Lactating mothers end weight loss, others gaining weight slowly.

July: Cherries, blueberries, serviceberries, wild sarsaparilla berries and raspberries begin ripening and become the major foods. All bears gain weight rapidly if the crops are good.

August: Viburnum berries, dogwood berries, wild plums, hawthorn berries, mountain-ash berries, and hazelnuts ripen. Bears switch to hazelnuts if the nuts are abundant, otherwise continue feeding on berries. Weight gain continues.

September: Acorn ripen. Berries and hazelnuts become scarce. Bears with acorns continue to feed and fatten. Others begin losing weight. Nursing ends. Lethargy begins. Some enter dens.

October: Most enter dens. Hibernation is light.

November: Hibernation deepens. Heart rate slows to as low as 8 beats per minute. Breathing slows to one breath in 45 seconds. Fertilized eggs implant in uterus.

December: Hibernation continues. Cubs sleep through their first birthday without celebrating.