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October 11, 2013
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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, a not-for-profit, AZA-accredited wildlife park and educational facility, with a diverse crew of staff and volunteers. We're glad you're here with us, and we hope to see you in person soon.
As usual, there's a lot going on in this issue. Enjoy the photos and the news. Get to know our amazing cast of characters, and share us with your friends. Please come visit us right here in West Yellowstone, relax and watch the animals, and participate in one of our interactive programs and displays. Until then we wish you all the best. We hope we can bring a little discovery and excitement your way. See you soon!
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Around The Center
What's Happening at the GWDC
Despite the government shutdown and the very real impact it is having on all sorts of people and businesses, in gateway communities to National Parks like West Yellowstone and across the country, October is rolling along. Thank goodness for things we can count on, like pumpkin farms and crisp autumn days, and generous supporters of the Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center.
As you can see in the background, we've already had a couple dustings of snow here in Montana, and no shortage of cold temperatures. We've been a little spoiled the last few years with spectacular Indian summers, but it looks like this year we've gone straight from summer to fall in earnest, and winter's not far behind. Our hours are reflecting these seasonal changes; currently we are open from 8:30 - 6:00 p.m., and we will begin closing at 4:00 pm on October 28th. Also, we want to let everyone know we will be moving Admissions to the Gift Shop for the winter on Monday October 14th, after closing. This means if you visit after next Monday, you'll walk to the left instead of the right as you approach from the parking lot. You can still count on a warm greeting, incredible animals, fascinating educational programming, and lots of goodies in the Gift Shop. Shutdown or not, we are open 365 days every year, and we hope you'll make the most of our changing schedule.
We hope to have a few more weeks to finish up our pre-winter projects. We have started clearing the viewing areas as we anticipate winter snow accumulation and removal. We are almost finished with the new bear diet kitchen and maintenance shop, and we have stained and weather-sealed most of the new fencing. The High Country wolf habitat improvements have been drawn up and preliminary work has begun, and work on the new aviary is underway.
Finally, as if this wordy newsletter isn't enough to keep you distracted from work for an entire morning or afternoon, there's an interesting article just out about the effects of hikers on the movement of grizzly bears in Banff National Park. Using motion-activated cameras, researchers are hoping to impact grizzly management and conservation. You can read the entire article here.
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, reply to this newsletter, or email
info@grizzlydiscoveryctr.com. We will 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! We welcome your feedback and suggestions. Thanks again for tuning in.
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 | | Adara |
Bears, Wolves, and Birds
(Oh My!)
Animal Updates
Pumpkins, pumpkins, pumpkins! A truckload of them to be exact! Bears and wolves will be receiving these treats over the next several months. Some are kept fresh, others frozen, some filled with scents and other enrichment items, others left unaltered. ALL are appreciated, and none will go to waste!
Just as our hours naturally change with the changing seasons, our enrichment does too. In this season of abundance, we are going back to the basics with enrichments for the wolves and bears. We will have meat, bones, and other natural food items to put into the habitats, as well as a new list of scents and oils.
One of our keepers will be traveling to Kalispell this week to pick up an older but still functional bear trap donated by Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks. We are fortunate to display this trap in our new Living with Bears Trail, an exhibit opening next spring to educate visitors about securing livestock and property so wild grizzlies and humans can safely coexist.
Stay tuned and we'll keep you posted on the reason we're all here - the animals! Remember to check out our webcams when you're wondering what's going on around at the Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center or wanting to stay connected until your next visit. Every issue of our email newsletter will have updates on our animals, and we will still be sending quarterly newsletters through the mail. Read more about these Howls & Growls newsletters below, and please come visit us soon.
Check out our bears...
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Education
Knowledge Is a Powerful Tool
Chip, the Center's American Kestrel, along with Acadia the Northern Saw-whet Owl and Nahani the Rough-legged Hawk made special guest appearances at the Bridger Raptor Festival last weekend, October 5th-6th. They were featured in the Live Raptor presentations Saturday and Sunday, which were attended by over 400 people! The festival, which is free to the public, centers around a raptor migration count of the largest known Golden Eagle migration in the United States which takes place at the Bridger Bowl ski area in the Gallatin National Forest just north of Bozeman. We were proud to be part of another successful festival. We still have space in our October CIG class. If you're interested in learning about this Certified Interpretive Guide training program, give us a call here at the Center. The class will run from Thursday October 17th through Sunday the 20th. We would love to include you in this course. Next week is Wolf Awareness Week! We will be presenting special programs, scheduling movies, and offering temporary tattoos, coloring and activity sheets, and Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks FACT Sheets about wolves. We also have commemorative, frame-ready 2013 Wolf Awareness Week Posters available for only $2. Please come out and help us raise awareness and interest. If you're interested in visiting the GWDC with your family or with your students, or if you'd like to sponsor a Teaching Trunk or outreach program, let us know. One of the Center's naturalists can visit your school for special assemblies, programs or activities. As you know, some of our birds-of-prey (like Chip!) can travel for such programs as can our large collection of wolf and bear artifacts. We will customize the program or the Teaching Trunk for your group and areas of special interest.
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Developments
New and Exciting Opportunities to Support the GWDC
They're HERE! Benefit Wines has teamed with us to introduce our new line of charity wines from Grizzly & Wolf Vineyards - a lineup of six estate-grown imported wines. These delectable wines, imported from Lontue Valley, Chile are highly rated and affordably priced for the wine and charity lover. The GWDC will receive $6.00 of the purchase price from every bottle of wine purchased at www.benefitwines.com/gwdc. Have you ever seen a better-looking label? We can vouch for the taste too! We think it's safe to say we've got your holiday season in the bag!
The certified organic and vegan-friendly wines - Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc, Malbec and Pinot Noir - are produced on a free trade vineyard in Lontue Valley, Chile. Shipping is expensive if you order only one bottle, but if you group your purchase into multiple bottles or try a Sample or Collector's Package, the shipping makes more sense. To learn more about the wines, the shipping policies, or to order, please click here! If you'd prefer a paper order form to complete and mail, just call the Center or email jenniferh@grizzlydiscoveryctr.com, and if you'd like to order via phone, you can dial the Benefit Wines office at (978) 297-5477. We hope you LOVE this new idea as much as we do! Along with frost on the windshields and truckloads of pumpkins, October brings the end of our summer raffles! You have three weeks left to purchase raffle tickets for the beautiful handmade quilt and the stunning matted and framed photograph we've featured throughout the summer. Drawings will be held October 31st, and you do not need to be present to win, although THAT would boost attendance for one last day, wouldn't it? If you'd like to buy raffle tickets online, click here and type "raffle" in the Project line. Don't forget to tell us how many quilt tickets and/or how many photo tickets you want. Our deepest thanks go to Wendy Bishop and Ken Takata for donating their time and talents to support the Center.
Also from now until the end of October, you can receive a free 2014 Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center Calendar with any Animal Adoption! Whether you're in a gift-giving mood or just want to support your favorite animals, any annual adoption will come with our very own wall calendar for next year! Don't let this chance pass you by.
Remember our 2nd Annual Autumn Discovery Photo Contest is underway! We encourage anyone who visits this month to submit pictures of the bears, wolves, and birds. Ok, more than encourage; strongly urge? Prod? Twist your arm? You just might surprise yourself! For questions about the contest rules, simply reply to this email or call the Center.
Your support makes a world of difference to the animals here at the Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center. We hope to hear from you and see you soon.
Keep reading about other ways to support the GWDC...
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Eye Candy
Photographs and Artwork from the Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center
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. If you'd like to see your artwork here, send us an image! Paintings, sculptures, and mixed media are welcome too.
Our thanks to Nancy Wolfe, Julie Tipton, Dean Foy, Scott Heppel and Gretchen Heine for this week's photographs.
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We hope you enjoy this issue, learn a little something, and feel like you are here with us for just a few minutes. It's a pretty special place to be. Have a great couple of weeks and a fantastic autumn, and we'll look forward to seeing you soon.
Thanks again for keeping up with us and for all you do.
Sincerely,
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 | Keep an Eye Out Here for News of the Riparian Exhibit
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The GWDC Staff
Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center |
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Gift Shop
Happenings
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Greetings from the Gift Shop!
Inventory is over and our doors are open! We have several sale items and lots of new items to show you. Now is the time to stock up on books, cards, housewares, jewelry, and a unique souvenir for every member of your family. It may be a little too early to start talking about holiday shopping, but it's the perfect time to come by, help the Center, and enjoy the festive atmosphere of the Gift Shop.
Thank you for supporting and shopping at the Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center! We'll see you soon!
| We hope you'll check our online store often for new additions and special deals. Thanks for shopping with us!
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