If you go down to the woods today … Keen students of human nature that we are, it sometimes stuns us that our fellow humans can be quite so insensitive, cruel and frankly stupid. At the same time, it can amaze us that there are also many examples of kindness and dedication to salve the damage others do amongst our species. No wonder mother told us it was a confusing world. What was once one of the most common mammals in the world, spread across much of the planet’s surface, the Brown Bear is now restricted to a few habitats in the east of Europe and parts of north America. Due to humankind’s need to build roads, chop down forests and prove how clever we are by killing anything bigger and stronger than we are, there are now only around 400 Brown Bears in Croatia, living in the Velebit Mountains on approximately 950,000 hectares; which is not a lot of space should you be partial to a good 200 km a day walk as these beasts are. Considering their dwindling numbers; which has in fact led to their inclusion on the list of strictly protected species under the Bern Convention of 2000, it does seem somewhat idiotic that it is still legal in most places for dull and stunted people to go out and shoot these majestic creatures. Those in search of sport, sometimes meat, a new rug or the medicinal scrapings from the gall bladder are indeed absolutely banned from massacring mothers and cubs, but in the heat of battle and in the interests of convenience this rule is often disregarded. At birth, the cubs are blind, deaf, toothless, and weigh only one pound. They normally stay with their mother for one-and-a-half years. If mum meets with the wrong type in this period of their lives then this leaves the cubs helpless. Thus, since people are mostly to blame for these orphaned cubs, it’s also their responsibility to look after the little ‘uns who will die without being cared for. Strangely, it is not the people who kill the mother that adopt the cubs – that job is left to other humans. In the Velebit Mountains it is the job of the Zagreb-Based Croatian Centre for Ecology, who with a little financial help from Zagrebačka Banka run the Velebit Association Kuterevo – a Brown Bear Orphanage. To be found in the Velebit Mountains, 15km from the town Otočac, just above the fertile region of Gacko polje in the centre of the country and close to the Velebit National Park, the Kuterevo sanctuary was set up in 2002, with two residents: Mrnja Brundo and Janja Zora. At the time of writing the population had tripled. With bear-hunting season about to start again who knows how many there will be by the time you visit? It's safe to say that if you go this year you will see Ljubo Lik and Zdravi Gor. The sanctuary has to act as surrogate mother for two years before the cubs are fully equipped and trained to wander back off into the wild and take their chances again in the fight against humans.

The sanctuary has been a instant success, despite it's fairly remote location, with almost 70,000 visitors turning up to ooh and aah at the cute orphans in the first year alone. Entrance to the park costs 10 kn. There is an educational bear trail and visitors centre but by far the most popular event at the sanctuary, for humans and bears alike, is dinner time. You can watch the inmates munch on grasses, bulbs, and roots, insects such as ants, fish, and small mammals at the following times: 09:00; 12:00; 15:00; 18:00. The sanctuary encourages enquiries and feedback. Get in touch with the Director of the Refuge: Ivan Crnković, tel. (+385-53) 79 92 22, 091 583 54 12, email: crnkovic@gs.t-com.hr. Velebitsko utočište za male medvjede Kuterevo G51/3, Pod crikvom 103, 53225 Kuterevo. kuk-kuterevo@gs.t-com.hr, www.kuterevo-medvjedi.hr.