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| Living Alongside Giants |
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It may be the most unusual -- and adventurous -- adoption ever attempted.
In the spring of 1997, naturalist Charlie Russell and artist Maureen
Enns became the proud foster parents of three rambunctious daughters.
Maureen Enns and Charlie Russell. |
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But these were no ordinary little girls: they were wild grizzly bear cubs
whose mother had been killed by a hunter. And it was no ordinary adoption.
Instead of trying to tame the youngsters, the new parents hoped to teach
their sharp-clawed "kids" just enough to survive on their own
in the rugged wilds of Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula. The NATURE program
WALKING WITH GIANTS: THE GRIZZLIES OF SIBERIA tells the remarkable story
of how this human couple went about raising a trio of bears in one of
the world's last great wildernesses. And it highlights
how, through a combination of careful study and personal courage, Charlie
and Maureen are forcing people to reconsider an age-old image of the grizzly
bear as a ferocious man-eater who can't live in harmony with people. They
demonstrate that it is possible to learn to forge a respectful relationship
with these seemingly fierce giants.
"We are carefully exploring the question of whether, by treating
bears well and with respect, we can create a safe environment for both
of us," says Russell, a former Canadian rancher who has nurtured
a lifelong fascination with the powerful predators. "If it is possible
to truly understand and live with grizzlies, then it should be of great
interest to people all over the world who are responsible for managing
and preserving bears in the wild, particularly in areas close to human
habitation."
To many people, grizzlies are symbols of power and ferocity -- creatures
to be feared and, too often, killed. Indeed, they are awesome animals:
capable of weighing 1,500 pounds, standing 10 feet tall, and running more
than 30 miles an hour over rough terrain. But Russell, Enns, and others
say the big brown bear, known to scientists as Ursus arctos, is
too often misunderstood and maltreated. Russell, for one, believes that
friction between bears and humans often stems from people's unthinking
treatment of the bears, from hunting and harassing them to feeding them
from their cars and trash piles. "Most people fear bears because
of a perpetual misunderstanding," he says, "and bears fear people
because of the mistreatment [they] receive due to this misunderstanding."
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