News release from the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission:
The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) has released an orphaned female bear cub in an undisclosed and remote Western North Carolina mountain area. The cub gained international interest earlier this year when video was posted on social media showing a group of people pulling her from a tree at an Asheville apartment complex, and then taking photos of themselves holding her. It is illegal in North Carolina to possess or keep a black bear cub.
The cub was later rescued by NCWRC staff in a nearby retention pond and taken to a state-licensed rehabilitation facility. A second cub, presumed to be her sibling, was seen running away in the video and was never located. It is unknown whether the cubs were in the tree because they had been orphaned or if the two were simply waiting for their mother to return. While rehabilitated animals are generally not given names, the public referred to her as “selfie bear” due to the nature of her becoming orphaned.
Once staff determined she was healthy and able to successfully survive in the wild, she was fitted with a tracking collar and given identifying tags and marks before being released.
“The GPS collar data shows that she is adjusting well to life back in the wild,” said NCWRC Bearwise® Coordinator Ashley Hobbs. “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.”
NCWRC wildlife biologists advise that a bear cub seen alone is rarely orphaned. Often the mother bear is nearby foraging for food and will return in a few hours, or earlier. Remaining in the area or attempting to catch the cub could inadvertently separate it from its mother and possibly injure the cub.
“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 said. “By trying to capture a bear cub, you may cause it to become orphaned, injured or both.”
By fall, calls to the agency wildlife helpline about suspected orphaned bear cubs decline and are replaced by inquiries concerning bears denning in urban areas. If a healthy cub is orphaned in late summer or early fall, it is old enough to be self-sufficient, as shown by the successful release of rehabilitated black bear cubs at this same time of year.
When bears and their cubs emerge in the spring, NCWRC advises the public to contact NCWRC if they if they suspect they’ve encountered an orphaned bear cub and not attempt to approach, capture or feed it. Instead, give the mother plenty of room and time to reconnect with her cub. To avoid harming yourself or the bear cub:
- Do not handle it.
- Do not attempt to catch it.
- Do not remove it.
- Do not feed it.
- Do take note of your location and call the NC Wildlife Helpline (866-318-2401). If after hours or on weekends, call a district wildlife biologist to report it.
Olfenbuttel added, “It’s imperative for the public to never feed a bear of any age. This will cause it to become habituated to people, and with cubs, it makes it more challenging for successful rehabilitation back into the wild. Last year, an orphaned cub was repeatedly approached and fed by people and despite our rehabilitator’s best efforts, the cub was too habituated to be successfully released back in the wild.”
This bear was the ninth cub rehabilitated and released by NCWRC in 2024. NCWRC has been rehabilitating and releasing orphaned black bear cubs since 1976 to assure these cubs have the best chance of success once they are returned to the wild. In 2020, NCWRC’s successful rehabilitation and release of three black bear cubs back into the wild was featured on episode seven of National Geographic WILD’s “Secrets of the Zoo: North Carolina.”
BearWise® Basics offers proven methods to cohabitate with bears. Visit the NCWRC blog to learn more about theblack bear cub rehabilitation program and information on bear denning.
Video of cub/tree/selfie incident April 2024
Video of release in October 2024
Videos and photos attribution NCWRC staff
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