Residents wake to Florida black bear swimming through lake before sprinting across neighborhood yards

In Port St. Lucie's Tradition community last week, a Florida black bear disrupted an otherwise routine morning.

What happened?

According to WPLG, residents circulated a video of a Florida black bear moving through the Tradition Town Park community.

The footage showed the black bear getting out of a body of water and running across someone's yard.

People had mixed reactions to the incident.

"I think it's kind of cool because I'm like an adrenaline junkie. I like that adrenaline. I like the chaos," resident Jeronimo Alonso told WPLG.

Another resident, David Hoffman, said, "Seeing it swim through the lake and then go through the houses, you know, I've got a little pet at home. Kind of makes you think twice before you head outside."

Why does it matter?

Officials said Florida black bears generally steer clear of people and often keep moving when no easy food source is available, WPLG reported. 

As development pushes farther into natural areas across many parts of Florida, people and wildlife are increasingly likely to cross paths.

These encounters are not always the result of aggressive animal behavior. In many cases, human activity — including expanding development and leaving accessible food sources behind — can make these interactions more likely.

Close contact with humans can be dangerous for bears, too. The more wildlife becomes accustomed to neighborhoods, the greater the chance of stressful or harmful encounters for both animals and people.

What can I do?

WPLG reported that officials said the safest response is to leave the bear plenty of room and avoid interacting with it. It's important to not approach, feed, or provoke the bear at all.

If you find yourself near a bear, officials told WPLG to stay calm, speak in a calm, firm voice, and slowly back away instead of running. Creating distance slowly gives the animal a chance to leave on its own instead of stressing it out.
According to WPLG, officials said anyone who feels threatened by a bear, sees an injured or orphaned bear, or witnesses someone intentionally feeding or harming one should contact the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission's alert hotline at 888-404-3922.

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