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Bears and humans have a tenuous relationship when it comes to food- specifically, people food. Though bears aren't usually very partial to us, they love what we eat, and many a park picnic or backwoods camping trip has been derailed by a hungry bear swiping the humans' supply of food for themselves. It would almost be endearing, if it weren't for the fact that bears developing a liking for our food increases the likelihood of aggression towards humans and puts both parties at risk.
A few lucky black bears got to live like Yogi Bear and Boo-Boo for a day on June 1, when they raided a campsite in front of shocked spectators at the Oakland Zoo in California. Fortunately, no picnic-goers were actually put at risk here, as the campsite was a mock setup created for an educational demonstration!
This family of black bears looked as if they couldn't believe their luck. A fully stocked and unguarded campsite, right in the middle of their zoo enclosure ? What were the odds? Audience members could be heard gasping in shock and awe in the zoo's video (shared to TikTok by @abcnews ) as the hungry bears went to town on the mock campsite, raiding coolers, trampling tents, trashing picnic tables, and even eating marshmallows off the trees as if they were in a bear-friendly version of Willy Wonka 's factory.
Related: Bear Breaks Into California Home and Makes Off With a Packet of Oreos
A Humorous Lesson on Bear Safety
The happy bears were clearly having the time of their lives, and audience members even "aww"-ed when one bear adorably flopped down onto a flattened tent. Of course, their reactions probably would have been less positive had a couple of unfortunate campers actually been inside that tent.
That, of course, was the point of the demonstration. According to WNCT 9 News , the mock campsite was part of the Oakland Zoo's third annual Bear Camp event , which teaches campers and other outdoor explorers how to avoid dangerous bear encounters in the wild. Obviously, it didn't take long for the bears to prove how quickly they could trash a campsite when there's food to be found!
So now that the audience saw a live demonstration of the bears' penchant for wreaking havoc, how might they go about bearproofing a campsite for future trips? Colleen Kinzley, the Vice President of Animal Care at Oakland Zoo, shared some essential bear safety tips with CNN .
"Many of the camps have 'bear boxes,' and that's really the place to keep your food," said Kinzley. "Never [leave] your food out, even if you're just stepping away for a short period of time."
Bears familiar with human presence have learned to recognize coolers as well, Kinzey says, and they're no substitute for smell-proof bear boxes. Same goes for cars: "People keeping their food in their cars, you know, bears can easily break into cars," Kinzey warns.
But what if you do all that and still encounter a bear? Stay calm, Kinzey says: "[Alert] them before you're in close proximity, don't run from a bear. Stand up, be calm, wave your hands, talk to the bear, let them know, 'This is a human, and you can get away from me,' and that's typically what they're gonna want to do, is get away from a person."
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