A mother bear waited patiently for her cub to clamber up the powdery snow to reach her at the top of a mountain
IT was almost snow-go for a cute – and determined – cub which gamely tried to follow its mum up a steep and extremely slippery snow-covered slope.
Video footage of the plucky young animal shows the creature refusing to have a melt-down, despite repeatedly sliding down the powdery surface.
The mother bear begins leading her cub across the snow towards the ridgeCredit: ViralHogThe clip, which has gone viral on social media, had viewers admitting they felt “stressed out” as it was “hard to watch” the cub continually slide down the mountain, towards rocks.
It starts by showing the pair clambering over a rocky patch of ground as the mum guides her young cub towards the top of the mountain.
Both animals initially slide down the slope, but the mother quickly regains her footing and makes it to the ridge, where she waits for the cub to join her.
Plenty of heart-stopping moments follow as the cub struggles to reach her, and it leaves long trails in the snow where its claws have dug in to stop it slipping too far below.
Both initially slip down the powdery snowCredit: ViralHog
While its patient mother waits above, the cub makes its move up the mountainCredit: ViralHogHowever it slides a considerable distance, ending up on a large rocky patch.
Meanwhile, its mother looks anxiously over the ridge, pacing to and fro.
At one stage, the cub is within just a few feet of its mum.
But at this precise moment, when the cub is nearly beside her, she appears to look straight ahead, and seems nervous about a drone filming her cub.
When the drone appears to get too close to the pair, the mother looks straight at it, and seems to become anxiousCredit: ViralHog
The mother bear appears to be distracted by the drone, and lunges forwardCredit: ViralHog
At one stage, the cub slid all the way down to a rocky patch, far below its parentCredit: ViralHog
Long way to climbCredit: ViralHog
Success: the pair are finally together, and run awayCredit: ViralHogAs the device apparently gets closer and zooms in, she lunges forward with her paws.
This action moves chunks of snow, and sends her baby sliding down the slope yet again.
The cub’s repeated attempts eventually result in it managing to reach her, and the pair immediately run away.
Former co-host of Discovery Channel’s science magazine Daily Planet, Ziya Tong, posted the video on Twitter, saying: “We could all learn a lesson from this baby bear: Look up and don’t give up”.
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This prompted a string of questions about the “controversial” way in which the footage was taken, with Clayton Lamb asking: “Ziya, can you address the potential wildlife welfare issues here from the drone harassment? Glad to see a wildlife tweet go viral, but it seems important to get the right message out.”
After others also questioned the way in which the footage was taken.
Tong said that she hoped “the public will be made aware of better filming practices with drones in the wild”.