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DISCOVERY
News from The Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center
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Hello and welcome! Thanks for dropping in to the Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center. Even if you're not currently in West Yellowstone, we're glad you're here with us. We'll try to keep you up to date with a newsletter every other week or so, filling you in on all that's happening with the GWDC. In case you didn't know, we're a not-for-profit, AZA-accredited wildlife and educational facility, with a diverse crew of staff and volunteers. We currently care for nine grizzlies, eight wolves, seven birds-of-prey, and big plans for more habitat and programming underway. We have a lot to show you and tell you about in this issue. We hope you enjoy the photos and the news. Get to know our amazing cast of characters, and share us with your friends. We hope to see you soon, right here in West Yellowstone, relaxing and watching the animals, or participating in one of our interactive programs and displays, but until then we wish you all the best. We hope we can bring a little discovery and excitement your way. Enjoy! |
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Around The Center
What's Happening at the GWDC
 We've had a busy couple of weeks here at the Center. We've had fantastic visitors, sunny weather, and multiple projects underway. One of those is this newsletter! We are excited to get it up and running, and thrilled to welcome you to our bi-weekly updates. We'd also like to welcome a few new staff members, and wish our very best to those who are leaving now that the summer season is drawing to a close. Good luck students and friends, and welcome Ploy, Peg, and Jen. We'll have more news on how our center is growing and changing in the weeks to come. With the days getting shorter, we are anticipating a schedule change next week. Beginning Monday, September 3rd, (Happy Labor Day by the way!), we will begin closing at 7:00 p.m. The bear schedule will be ever-changing from then until November, when we will establish a winter routine for ourselves and the animals. For the time being, Wolf Enrichment will take place daily at 11:15 and 5:30, and Keeper Kids will do their thing at 4:00 M-F, and 10:00 & 4:00 on weekends and holidays. We tested a newly designed Kevlar backpack last week. It was VERY exciting, and it's tempting to make you wait on pins and needles for the next newsletter to publish whether it passed or not. We're kind-hearted here at the GWDC though, so we'll skip the cliff-hanger. The backpack PASSED! Photos and more on this in the holiday Howls & Growls, which will be mailed out in early December. In other news, we're planning more testing for coolers and food storage lockers next week, we picked up some terrific donations from area retailers, and we're waiting for benches for the amphitheater to be delivered. More on this later in this issue! Remember if you have any questions, or just want to know more about any aspect of the Center, you can always give us a call at 406.646.7001, or email info@grizzlydiscoveryctr.com. We try to keep you informed and up to date in as many ways as we can. Your involvement and interest in what we do keeps us doing it! Thanks again for tuning in. |
| Bears, Wolves, and Birds
(Oh My!)
Animal Updates
With fall approaching, the bears are entering a phase called hyperphagia. Hyperphagia is a period of excessive eating and drinking to fatten for hibernation. During hyperphagia, a bear may increase its intake of food from 8,000 calories to 20,000 calories per day. With bears now entering their binge-eating season, it becomes even more important to secure trash, pet foods, bird feeders, and other easy sources. One of our main goals this time of year is to educate visitors about the importance of always carrying bear spray and using caution when fishing, camping, hiking, and participating in all outdoor activities here in Yellowstone country.
Both the bears and the wolves are enjoying the enrichment items that were purchased after the spring Discovery Drive. We are excited to be able to provide toys, specialty food items, and stimulating scents and spices for the bears and wolves, thanks to your generosity. By enriching their dens and habitats, we can provide an environment that is physically and mentally healthy for the animals. Thank you for making the GWDC a place we're proud to call home.
And have you seen the cutest little owl in North America? If you haven't seen Acadia on Facebook, you may not know what you're missing. Click here to become her newest fan. Just one look - that's all it takes to fall head over heels for this amazing new member of our family.
Our birds-of-prey aviary has been a huge hit this summer. It's a peaceful and beautiful area, and if you haven't been here to see it, we encourage you to plan a trip before the weather turns to winter. We will move the birds into their cozy new indoor habitats as the weather changes.
Every issue of our email newsletter will have updates on our animals, and we will still be sending quarterly newsletters through the mail. We know it's not the people who draw you to the GWDC, as knowledgeable and nice as we are, so we'll keep you posted on the heart of the Center, the bears, wolves, and birds.
Read about our wolf packs... |
Education
Knowledge Is a Powerful Tool
So, if you haven't experienced a GWDC education program or outreach, it's hard to articulate exactly what is missing in your life. Sure, you can function. But can you say you've seen it all? Certainly not. Our education department is chock full of naturalists and teachers, passionate about the animals we care for and about sharing valuable research with the public. Their work is cut out for them with weather, ever-evolving information, and the various personalities and dynamics of our bears, wolves, and birds to keep tabs on. They do a tremendous job, and even make it look fun!
The GWDC will be represented at the Big Sky Mountain Festival and at the Raptor Festival in Bozeman in September. The education folks will also be presenting programs to several visiting schools, families, and tour groups in the upcoming weeks. They are currently working on various newsletter articles, research projects, and program improvements, including the possibility of adding a distance learning module to our offerings. We're also looking into a deeper partnership with the West Yellowstone School, to involve high school students in in-depth learning in a number of areas.
With all this going on, our educators still had time this week to look up this interesting fact: In Yellowstone National Park, 79% of the 43 bear attacks that have occurred in the last four decades have been directed towards men. Interesting, eh? No judgements, just facts. This one you'll have to interpret for yourself.
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Developments
New and Exciting Opportunities
 We have some exciting new opportunities for you to keep tabs on the Center and for you to support the work we do here. In addition to hiring a new Development person, we're days from taking our new website online, AND we have a new issue of Howls & Growls making its way to your mailbox. Our Facebook and Twitter accounts are active and entertaining to say the least, and we'll have some special events and planned giving information coming your way soon! Our raffle continues for this gorgeous photograph donated by Ken Takata. "Morning Storm on the Madison," is a 16" x 20" signed and matted with glass and a beautiful hardwood frame. To purchase tickets, email us, give us a call, or fill out the form on the back of your upcoming Howls & Growls newsletter. Each ticket is a tax-deductible donation of $10, and may be purchased through October 31, 2012. We have recently partnered with Donate For A Cause, an organization that raises money for non-profits through timeshare donations! What a great idea, right? Here's how it works: Most timeshare owners spend between $800 and $3000 trying to advertise and sell their property share, which eventually sells for $1,500 to $4,500. It doesn't take long to realize that the investment is not worth the reward. Donate For A Cause can complete all of the necessary transfer and tax documents for the donor, and pass the profits along to designated charities, such as the Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center. To learn more about this opportunity to donate a timeshare and benefit the GWDC, click here. Keep reading about other ways to support the GWDC... |
Eye Candy
Photograph by Gretchen Heine
We are honored to have many artists and photographers visit and support the GWDC. Their vision and talents inspire and enliven our work here, so we thought it would be nice to feature some of their work in every issue of our newsletter.
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Grab a Seat!
 As you may or may not know, the GWDC working on completing an amphitheater for programs and special events. The next step in our process is to install seating on the poured concrete foundation. The seating will be weather-resistant and as comfortable as public seating can be, and we're looking for sponsors! We will have a photo and a dollar amount in upcoming email newsletters, but we wanted to get you thinking about this chance to honor a loved one and help grow the Center's capacity for educating and entertaining the public. We will have plaques made and permanently installed to recognize sponsors those they are memorializing or honoring. We'll have specifics for you soon!
Another sponsorship opportunity involves benches for the animal-viewing areas. We hope to purchase and place decorative benches throughout the facility, and we would love to put your names and those of your loved ones on each of these pieces. Again, we'll have photographs and dollar amounts for you soon, but we wanted to get the gears in motion. Think about honoring a friend or family member through your gift of sponsorship to the Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center. We'll be in touch!
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We hope you enjoyed this issue, learned a little something, and felt like you were here with us for just a few minutes. It's a pretty special place to be. We hope you have a great couple of weeks, and make plans to come see us soon. Thank you!
Sincerely,
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The GWDC Staff
Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center |
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Gift Shop
Happenings
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The goal of our gift shop is to make the world a little bit nicer everyday. By enhancing your life with amazing gifts of books, functional and original art, home décor, jewelry and handmade artifacts, we hope to bring the animals of the GWDC home to you!
| 25% off any online or in-store item through 15 September 2012!
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