Description
Brown bear cubs in Finland’s bear-rich east — the region bordering Russia’s Karelia — emerge from their winter dens in late April when snow is still present in the forest shadows. This photograph was made from a hide positioned by local nature tourism operator at an established forest location where a family group visits reliably in the weeks after den emergence. The cub — estimated 4 months old, still with the disproportionately large feet, rounded ears, and prominent eye patches of the very young bear — was photographed at 12m range using a 500mm lens in the low spring forest light, the lichen-covered birch trees creating a natural Nordic forest backdrop.
