Bear Finds Hidden Wildlife Camera, Proceeds To Take Hundreds Of Selfies
Image via Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks
After a night out, this bear paused to capture the evening and snapped an entire collection of selfies.
At least, that’s what it looked like. The City of Boulder’s Open Space and Mountain Parks team has taken to Twitter to share the uproarious shenanigans of a bear who discovered one of its secret wildlife cameras in November last year. While most animals have been mere passersby, this one seemed fascinated by the equipment and took its time to snoop around it.
The bear eventually took 580 photos, of which about 400 were selfies.
Recently, a bear discovered a wildlife camera that we use to monitor wildlife across #Boulder open space. Of the 580 photos captured, about 400 were bear selfies.🤣 Read more about we use wildlife cameras to observe sensitive wildlife habitats. https://t.co/1hmLB3MHlU pic.twitter.com/714BELWK6c
— Boulder OSMP (@boulderosmp) January 23, 2023
The creature didn’t flash its teeth, so you wouldn’t be able to tell if it was a gummy bear.
Phillip Yates, a spokesperson for the department, tells NBC News that the images made his team laugh, and they decided to release the set to brighten other people’s day too.
Boulder’s Open Space and Mountain Parks committee has planted a network of nine automated cameras across a 46,000-acre spread of land.
These cameras are motion-activated and come alive when a creature steps in front of them, allowing conservationists to learn more about the local wildlife without disrupting the animals’ habitats. “The information we collect from them is used to recommend habitat-protective measures to help protect sensitive natural areas,” explains Will Keeley, senior wildlife ecologist for Open Space and Mountain Parks.
The hidden gadgets can record videos for up to 30 seconds. At night, they switch to infrared light mode to carry on documenting nocturnal wildlife passively without spooking the subjects.
Beavers, bobcats, coyotes, deer, lions, and owls are some of the faces who have appeared in front of these cameras. A selfie-loving bear might be a first.
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[via CNET and NBC News, images via Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks]
