BARBOURVILLE, Ky. ( FOX 56 ) — A bear in Knox County wasn’t about to let pending severe weather interrupt his New Year’s resolution; he had to get his steps in.
A man in Barbourville woke up to change the AC in his house when he saw a dark figure in the streets.
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Johnathan Hubbard said he thought his childhood nightmares were coming true.
“I’ve not always lived in town, so I always had a childhood fear of bears coming down the mountain and taking me away during the night,” Hubbards said.
The bear was spotted near the intersection of College Street and High Street.
According to Kentucky Fish and Wildlife, black bears usually start coming out of their winter den’s in late March or early April and can struggle to find natural foods, luring them into human communities.
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“Despite what some people think, black bears do not naturally occur in trashcans or a person’s backyard in the middle of town. Animals exhibiting those behaviors are doing so because they have either been fed or have learned to feed on improperly stored garbage or pet food. When bears are intentionally fed, they learn to associate people with food and lose their natural fear of humans.”
According to the U.S. Forest Service, June and July are peak months for bear sightings like this.
“During these months, males travel great distances looking for females. In addition, young bears, (usually a year or two in age), have now been pushed out on their own by their mothers and are looking to establish their own home range. This increased movement of the bears, along with the increasing number of people in natural areas, means there is a greater chance for bears and humans to come in contact with each other,” reads a news release.
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