July 7-13, 2005

mixpicks

Bad News Bears

wildlife

Don't talk to strangers. Look both ways before crossing. When you see a bear, make sure you don't reek of Coppertone.

Despite some recent Sopranos-style backyard appearances, most people are pretty clueless about what to do in the event of a run-in with a bear. The average citizen has probably heard more about bears from fairy tales and camp stories than from National Geographic, which is why the Philadelphia Zoo's Bear Awareness Days offer general info and safety tips about our distant mammalian cousins.

Bear Awareness Days are geared toward kids but should also be interesting enough to entertain and inform their parents. Thinking of going sans child? There is, uh, paws for concern: The activities will include making crafts that compare paw prints with handprints and a trivia beanbag game. The zoo staff will give special talks focusing on bear do's and don'ts, safety tips and how to avoid having an encounter with a bear in the first place.

The zoo's Bear Country, which houses polar, sloth, spectacled and Asiatic black bears, will host all of the special activities. For families planning to fish, hike or camp this summer, the event will be a good way to reassure and educate kids in an entertaining manner. Just make sure that you can bear a full day filled with "unbearably interesting tidbits about bears' lives."

"Bear Awareness Days," July 10-16, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. free with admission, Bear Country in the Philadelphia Zoo, 34th St. and Girard Ave., 215-243-5272.

—Nicole Woods