Black bears live in most of the forested regions of North America.
The majority of black bears in the United States can be found in the northeast region of the country.
But this Vermont man could not believe what he caught two bears doing in his backyard hammock.
Most Americans would be terrified to come across a large black bear while out enjoying a hike through the woods.
But black bears aren’t as dangerous as most people think.
Unlike grizzly bears, black bears rarely attack humans.
Black bears are amazing creatures.
They eat mostly grasses, herbs and fruit, and will sometimes eat fish.
Black bears have short claws that allow them to climb trees.
And even though they may weigh up to 500 pounds, black bears are surprisingly fast.
An adult black bear can run up to 25 miles per hour.
They have excellent noses and can smell seven times better than a bloodhound dog.
This sometimes leads to interactions with humans in areas with a large bear population.
And that’s exactly what happened to Waitsfield, Vermont resident Noah Dweck.
Dweck heard his backyard hammock jingling last week while at home.
Since the wind was calm that day, he instantly figured that it was likely due to bears.
He went to his backyard and what he saw left him stunned.
One bear was swinging in the hammock while the other one stood watch off to the side.
“Yeah, it was definitely like you probably could think of the conversation in the woods above the hammock was, ‘Hey, come check this out, I want to show you something,’” he recalled. “And the other one was just curiously sitting there watching him, you know, get in and see what was going on.”
“And when I came out, they both kind of just looked at me and said, ‘Hey, what’s up?’” he continued. “There was no, they weren’t scared,” he added. “They weren’t trying to run away until I yelled at them.”
According to Vermont Fish and Wildlife officials, this type of behavior is not a good sign.
“Bears are very quick learners and if they associate you with food, they’ll keep coming back for more and more food,” Blue Ridge Bears wrote on its website. “The problem is, they can easily become friendly with humans and can start going to the next human to see if they have food,” Blue Ridge Bears continued. “More than likely this will freak the neighbor out and the Black Bear could sadly pay the price and be euthanized.”
Dweck caught most of the bear in the hammock incident on video.
Noah and Kristen Dweck have seen a number of black bears around their home in Vermont but this was a first: a bear relaxing on their hammock. https://t.co/ziGK5z4VaG pic.twitter.com/ebnt7EN5xH
— FOX4 News Kansas City (@fox4kc) June 14, 2024
