watch-black-bear-kicks-back-denver-backyard-before-relocated-wild

WATCH: Black Bear Lounges in Denver Backyard Before Being Relocated to the Wild

Ah, bear country. Watch as this black bear goes from lounging about a Colorado backyard to a safe relocation back out in the wild.

Living in bear country means occasionally finding the incredible beasts out and about in both urban and rural areas. Take this smaller American black bear for example. On Tuesday, the Colorado Parks & Wildife’s NE Region received reports of a bear in Denver’s Highlands Ranch neighborhood.

“Wildlife officers this morning relocated a bear out of a Highlands Ranch neighborhood. It was reported in a backyard behind Dad Clark Dr. and University Blvd,” the organization tweets Tuesday. Within, CPW includes a fantastic shot of the black bear living his best life in someone’s backyard.

Their following tweets then show the black bear’s sedation and transportation back to safety, which you can see below.

According to CPW’s NE Region, the American black bear is a male around 12-years-old. While he weighs over 150-pounds, he’s a rather small gent for his species.

“Here, wildlife officers are about to prepare the tranquilized bear for transport out of the neighborhood,” CPW NE tweets alongside their footage. The little guy is seen taking a “nap” for his own good as officers bring his transport into place. He looks so peaceful!

CPW NE Region’s final update on the bear follows. “The bear is now on its way to be released back in appropriate bear habitat,” they tweet with further footage.

Within, we see the boar (male bear) going about his free ride back to the wild amidst a steel piping container. These repurposed drainage pipes make excellent cargo holds for large, strong predators like bears.

https://twitter.com/CPW_NE/status/1435298744493281281?s=20

Black Bear

As the CPW officer films their captive bear, his curious behavior becomes apparent. He is clearly habituated to humans, as he shows little fear of the equally curious officer. He did end up in a human neighborhood, after all.

While black bears remain a favorite animal for us humans (including this wildlife tech), they should always be respected and dealt with as large, powerful wild animals. Their omnivorous nature means they will hunt meat when they desire it – and human fatalities do occur. Injuries, however, are far more common.

In the months leading up to autumn and winter, bears are on the hunt for as much food as they can consume. They do so in order to fatten up for the coming hibernation and will display aggressive and exploratory behaviors in the process. It is a matter of life and death for them to survive through the winter, so it should come as no surprise.

In fact, black bears will consume a whopping 20,000 calories per day (if they can) during the later months. To help those co-existing with black bears in bear country, Colorado Parks and Wildlife has its “Be Bear Aware” program to educate state citizens on best bear practices. If you’re a Coloradan Outsider, give it a read if you haven’t before. It’s well worth the time!