Bear cub yanked from tree for selfies released into wild after rehabilitation
The GPS collar data shows that she is adjusting well to life back in the wild,” NCWRC Bearwise Hobbs said in a statement.
A bear cub that was yanked from a tree by people looking to take photos with it in April was released back into the wild following six months in a rehabilitation program
A black bear cub that made headlines when she was snatched from a tree outside an Asheville, North Carolina, apartment complex in April has been released back into the wild, wildlife officials in North Carolina say.
Rachel Staudt, who recorded the video of the incident outside an Asheville apartment complex, said the group started taking pictures of the cubs after pulling one out of the tree. “It was a horrible thing to do to an innocent baby animal,” Staudt told Storyful.
In Staudt's video, the group can be seen repeatedly attempting to yank the cubs from the tree then holding one of the bears and taking a selfie.
(Image credit: Rachel Stuadt/TMX)
The video also showed a second cub, which officials presumed to be her sibling, running away from the group taking selfies. The cub was never located. Wildlife officials said it's unknown whether the cubs were orphaned or simply in the tree waiting for their mother to return.
The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission has been rehabilitating and releasing bear cubs for decades. It was notified of the incident and immediately went to the location. "NCWRC staff arrived and were told both cubs had escaped after a cub bit one of the people. One of the cubs was found later in a retention pond and taken to a licensed cub rehabilitation facility," the commission said in a Facebook post detailing what happened.
NCWRC’s BearWise® Coordinator Ashley Hobbs, who captured the cub, noted at the time that it was in poor condition. “The cub appeared to be lethargic and frightened. It looked to be favoring one of its front paws and was wet and shivering," she said in an NCWRC statement.
(Photo credit: North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission)
Once rehab staff determined the rescued cub was fit to return to the wild, she was tagged and fitted with a tracking collar. She was released into a remote mountain area in western North Carolina, officials said on Wednesday.
“The GPS collar data shows that she is adjusting well to life back in the wild,” NCWRC Bearwise Hobbs said in a statement. “Like most rehabilitated black bear cubs, we expect this cub to follow its instincts this winter and identify an appropriate location to den. Bear cubs are resilient animals, and it looks like this cub won’t be an exception.”
Wildlife officials warned the public that bear cubs seen alone are rarely orphans, and their mother is likely nearby foraging for food. Attempting to catch the cub will only separate it from its mother.
“People who try to capture or handle a cub are not only risking the cub’s safety, but their own if the mother bear is nearby, as she may try to defend her cubs,” said Game Mammals and Surveys Supervisor Colleen Olfenbuttel. “By trying to capture a bear cub, you may cause it to become orphaned, injured or both.”
TMX contributed to this report.
Report a Typo
