97 on July 31, 2019 NPS photo by Ranger Tammy Carmack
Adult Male (2021 Season) ("Spot")
Borderline Subadult Male/Young Adult Male (2019)
Year First Observed: 2019
Year Last Observed: 2021
Known Offspring Of: Unknown (128 Grazer's 2016 Dark Offspring?)
Genetics Study Samples Obtained: Unknown at this time
Identification:[]
97 was initially observed during the 2019 season.
Mckate's ID Tips: 97 is probably most recognizable by the scar above his tail head. He has a long slightly upturned muzzle and close set eyes. His ears are small, round, and slightly blonde tipped. His coat is solid brown mid-season, but becomes grizzled in the fall when he also sports a shaggy head and beard.
Mckate's 97 YouTube Playlist
Distinctive Behaviors:[]
Mckate's Notes: 97 aka "Spot" showed up at the falls in 2019 in late July and was around off and on through October. He played with other subs, fished the lip, and bounced around in the J. He spent some time studying 812 and 806's lip fishing style and mimicked some of their moves.
97 wasn't seen on the cams in 2020, but returned for a couple of weeks in August of 2021. He fished in various spots at the falls, but preferred the lip.
Life History:[]
2019: Borderline Subadult/Adult Male, 1st Year Officially Identified[]
97 was initially identified and assigned his bear monitoring number during the 2019 season.
KNP&P Ranger Naomi Boak shared this newly identified bear's monitoring number with cam viewers on June 19, 20020 in her 13:08 comment:
2019 season:[]
2019.??.??: CarolineB shared a 2019 snapshot of 97 (near) and 812 (far) on 3/7/2021.
_and_812_(far)_2019_snapshot_by_CarolineB.jpg "97 (near) and 812 (far) 2019 snapshot by CarolineB.jpg (169 KB)")
July 2019:[]
2019.07.28: 97 stands on the platform side of the lip, 7/28/2019 snapshot by Squirrely.
2019.07.31: 97 on July 31, 2019 NPS photo by Ranger Tammy Carmack in KNP&P's Flickr album via KNP&P Ranger Naomi Boak .:
August 2019:[]
2019.08.01: 97 on the lip with 812, 8/1/2019 video by Lani H.
97 on the lip with 812 8-1-2019-2
Video by Lani H
2019.08.03: Goof_n shared an 8/3/2019 photograph of 97's rump scar on 5/25/2022. Goof_n also shared an 8/3/2019 photograph of 634 Popeye backing 97 off the falls. Goof_n shared these 8/3/2019 photographs (#1 & #2) of 634 Popeye backing 97 "Spot" off the lip (p 02/29/20 09:05).:
Please request Kacko & Goof_n's permission prior to using their photographs!
_and_97_(bottom)_August_3,_2019_photo_by_Kacko_and_Goof_n_.01.jpg "634 Popeye (top) and 97 (bottom) August 3, 2019 photo by Kacko and Goof n .01.jpg (2.44 MB)")
2019.08.04: Goof_n shared a 8/4/2019 photo of 97 on 5/25/2022.
Please request Kacko & Goof_n's permission prior to using their photographs!
97 below the falls platform, 8/4/2019 video by Lani H.
97 below platform 8-4-2019
Video by Lani H
2019.08.18: Mckate's 8/18/2019 video of 97 climbing up the falls by way of the rock wall and then climbing down by way of the fallen, wedged log.
18 Aug 2019- 97 Enters and Exits
Video by mckate
September 2019:[]
2019.09.18: 97 on the island, 9/18/2019 video by Lani H.
97 on the island 9-18-2019
Video by Lani H
Susan Grace's 9/18/2019 photos of 97 playing with 907, #1, #2, #3 and #4.
2019.09.21: Mckate's 9/21/2019 video of 97 slipping off the lip. "I couldn't tell if it was accidental or intentional. In either case she avoided another confrontation with Walker."
21 Sep 2019- 97 Slips Off the Lip
Video by mckate
2019.09.22: NSBoak (aka Ranger Naomi Boak) shared a 9/22/2019 photo of 812 (near) and 97 (far) on 3/7/2021.
Please request NSBoak's (aka Ranger Naomi Boak) permission prior to using her photographs!
_and_97_(far)_September_22,_2019_photo_by_NSBoak_(aka_Ranger_Naomi_Boak).jpg "812 (near) and 97 (far) September 22, 2019 photo by NSBoak (aka Ranger Naomi Boak).jpg (342 KB)")
2019.09.23: Mckate's 9/23/2019 "Lip Fishers Strike Out" video. Tough day for lip fishers 907, 909, 812, 821, and 97. 97 is the last.
23 Sep 2019- Lip Fishers Strike Out
Video by mckate
2019.09.24: 97 fishes the lip in this 9/24/2019 video by Lani H.
97 on the lip 9-24-2019
97 on the lip 9/24/2019
2019.09.25: 97 waits for jumpers, 9/25/2019 video by mckate. " Not the best fishing in the morning, but it looked like things might have picked up in the evening."
25 Sep 2019- 97 Waits for Jumpers
Video by mckate
2019.09.26: 97 (near) shares the lip with 812, 9/26/2019 video by mckate.
26 Sep 2019- 97 and 812 Share Lip and J
Video by mckate
2019.09.28: Close up 9/28/2019 snapshot of 97 by Bookmom. Snapshot of 97 by Bookmom showing that 97 is male as evidenced by him urinating straight down.
October 2019:[]
2019.10.06: 480 Otis chases 97 for no apparent reason, 10/6/2019 video by mckate.
6 Oct 2019- Run, Spot, Run!
Video by mckate
2019.10.12: Lani H's 10/12/2019 video of 97 headed to the jacuzzi.
97 heads to the jacuzzi 10-12-2019
Video by Lani H
2019.10.17: 97 shows his balance beam skills, 10/17/2019 video by mckate. "This is probably one of many ways young bears get dinged up."
17 Oct 2019- 97 Shows His Balance Beam Skills
Video by mckate
2019.10.21: 97 near the falls platform, 10/21/2019 video by Lani H.
97 near the falls platform 10-21-2019
Video by Lani H
2019.10.26: Lani H's 10/26/2019 video of 97 around the falls.
97 around the falls 10-26-2019
Video by Lani H
2020: Borderline Subadult/Adult Male[]
97 does not appear on the list of Bears Monitored in 2020.:
2020 Season Official Bears Monitored List provided by Ranger Lian April 14, 2022 10:12
September 2020:[]
2020.09.26: Could this be 97 in this 9/26/26 video by mckate?
26 Sep 2020- Could this be 97 Spot? (explore.org)
Video by mckate
October 2020:[]
2020.10.11: Is this 97 in the riffles? 10/11/2020 video by Lani H.
97?? in the riffles 10-11-2020
Video by Lani H
2020.10.17: Is this 97 at the falls, 10/17/2020 video by Hey Princess.
97 Spot at the falls 10.17.20-2
Video by Hey Princess
2021: Adult Male[]
97 does not appear on the list of Bears Monitored in 2021.:
2021 Season Official Bears Monitored List provided by Ranger Lian April 14, 2022 10:12
August 2021:[]
2021.08.05: 97 arrives and joins tonight's lip fishing lineup, 8/5/2021 video by mckate. "402 was surrounded by young boars. Front to Back: 97, 903, 402, 913, and 912 sitting back. Slappy was the bear eating further down the lip. He didn't know the proper etiquette is to back out when you catch a fish. If 97 is Walnut, as some speculate, he was fishing next to his brother 903."
5 Aug 2021- 97 Arrives and Joins Tonight's Lip Fishing Lineup (explore.org)-2
Video by mckate
2021.08.10: 97 fishes the lip with 909 and her spring cub, 8/10/2021 video by mckate. "Great to see 97 who we didn't see at all last season. This isn't something you see every day, but so far 909's risk taking is paying off because she caught a number of fish today."
10 Aug 2021- 97 Fishes Lip with 909 and Her Girl (explore.org)
Video by mckate
2021.08.12: 97 on the near and 913 on the far, 8/12/2021 video by mckate. "I originally thought these were both 913, but later realized that the dark bear was 97. No wonder they didn't match!"
12 Aug 2021- 97 on the Near and 913 on the Far Lip-2
Video by mckate
2021.08.18: 97 shows his spot, 8/18/2021 video by mckate. "97 is also known as "Spot" for the scar above his tail head. I don't believe he was seen at all last season."
18 Aug 2021- 97 Shows His 'Spot' (explore.org)
Video by mckate
2021.08.19: 97 fishes the lip again, 8/19/2021 video by mckate. "Thanks to Shel who did some profile comparisons of this bear and 97's official NPS photo. It was a match! So I feel confident that this is 97 formerly known as Spot. When 97 first began fishing the lip in 2019, he did so by watching 806 who he mimicked perfectly. Because he also develops a large fall ruff like 806, it was almost impossible to tell them apart until he turned around and revealed his tail head scar."
19 Aug 2021- 97 Fishes Lip Again (explore.org)
Video by mckate
2021.08.20: 128 Grazer backs up 97 in this 8/20/2021 video by mckate. "I don't think 97 has had the pleasure of making Grazer's acquaintance until now, unless he really is her 2016 cub Walnut."
20 Aug 2021- 128 Backs Up 97 (explore.org)
Video by mckate
97 makes quick meal of a small fish, 8/20/2021 video by mckate.
20 Aug 2021- 97 Makes Quick Meal of Small Fish (explore.org)
Video by mckate
Another look at 97, 8/20/2021 video by mckate.
20 Aug 2021- Another Look at 97 (explore.org)
Video by mckate
2022: Adult Male[]
97 is not believed to have been observed in 2022.
2023: Adult Male[]
How 97 Got His Nickname:[]
97 does not have an official nickname. The NPS has moved away from naming bears at KNP&P.
While waiting for an official ID number, 97 was referred to as "Spot" due to the white scar at the top of his tail. This is not an official nickname.
Known Courting & Mating:[]
Unknown
Known Relatives:[]
Unknown
Shel_ shared a theory (speculation) regarding the POSSIBILITY that 97 could potentially be 128 Grazer's darker male 2016 offspring/2017 yearling (p 08/22/21 20:23):
"A few years back I did some comparison pics (128's dark cub vs. the bear with mid-line rump scar) (#1, #2 & #3), but I never posted any of them. I need to label them with more precise dates, etc., but for now, these are some general comparisons:
Left: 128 Grazer's dark cub as a yearling - 2017
Right: Identified as 97 by chatters -- 2019 (If this bear is 128's dark cub, he would have been about 3.5 years old in these pics.)"
Rachel Wannamaker shared this information re: the possibility of 97 "Spot" being 128 Grazer's darker male offspring:
Genetics Study Samples Obtained:[]
Unknown