Bear with Beaver

NANPA Judge’s Choice Award

The elusive beaver woke up in the muddy, low tide of Cook Inlet, Alaska. Her arrival stumped onlookers. Neither brown bears nor beaver appeared disturbed by the other.

Suddenly, the atmosphere changed. The beaver’s hair stood on end, as she started to bark at the bear. The nearest bear lowered his head and ears before bending his front legs and springing forward. He forced the beaver to the ground with one swat of his powerful front leg. I closed my eyes at the beaver’s high-pitched scream. The fresh scent of blood drew bears from near and far. The beaver’s lifeless body hung from the bear’s mouth, as he frantically ran from the approaching crowd, looking over his shoulder. The bear guide said he’d never witnessed anything like it before. I remembered that this was wilderness and how cruel it can be.

Coastal Brown Bear, Lake Clark National Park, Alaska, 2012

Canon 1D Mark IV, Canon 500mm F/4, f/5.6, 1/1250s, ISO 800, RRS tripod