Wild bear in Fort Myers neighborhood lured into trap with waffles & syrup

A black bear was captured after it was spotted wandering neighborhoods near Colonial Boulevard early Monday morning.

The wild animal put the Grace Community School on alert around 7:50 a.m.

Dave Telesco, who directs the FWC’s Bear Management Program, urged area residents to be careful with disposing of food.

“Bears are starting to come out of their winter dens and they’re searching for food,” Telesco said. “Don’t give a bear a reason to hang around in your neighborhood. Remove anything that might attract a bear. If they can’t find food, they’ll move on.”

Officers located the bear cornered in the area of 1700 Deleon Street as of 8:00 a.m. The animal will be relocated to a more suitable location.

John Skeens woke up to the strange sight Monday morning and couldn’t believe what he was seeing.

“When I walked out my door, the bear was right here in front of my door so I shut the door and I waited a few seconds. I opened it up and the bear was walking away,” he said.

Although the black bear didn’t get a warm welcome, it did get some breakfast. FWC officers say they usually use doughnuts, but this time they lured the bear into a trap using waffles and syrup.

“How it got here, it had to have crossed roads, climbed a fence or come across Colonial to get back here. I don’t know. There’s dumpsters where it was heading,” Skeens said.

FWC says to keep bears away from your home, they recommend you secure your garbage containers with lids that lock and are waste pick-up friendly. They also say you should put your garbage out the morning of pick-up instead of the night before.

Black bears are not usually aggressive, but have injured people in Florida, the FWC adds. You should still never approach one, and keep your pets close to you as dogs can trigger defensive behaviors, especially from females with cubs.

FWC provided additional helpful hints to ward bears away from neighborhoods:

• Secure household garbage in a sturdy shed, garage or a wildlife-resistant container.
• Put household garbage out on morning of pickup rather than the night before.
• Secure commercial garbage in bear-resistant dumpsters.
• Protect gardens, beehives, compost and livestock with electric fencing.
• Encourage your homeowner’s association or local government to institute bylaws or ordinances to require trash be kept secure from bears.
• Feed pets indoors or bring in leftover food and dishes after feeding outdoors.
• Clean grills and store them in a secure place.
• Remove wildlife feeders or make them bear-resistant.
• Pick ripe fruit from trees and bushes and remove fallen fruit from the ground.