Bear in Colorado Takes Hundreds of Cute Selfies on Wildlife Camera
"These pictures made us laugh, and we thought others would, too."
Colorado park rangers were surprised and entertained to find 400 pictures of the same bear caught on their camera traps. Boulder, Colorado's Open Space and Mountain Parks (OSMP) wanted to study sensitive wildlife habitats without interfering with the animals in their natural state. Nine camera traps were set across 46,000 acres—and one animal was clearly the star of the show.
"Recently, a bear discovered a wildlife camera that we use to monitor wildlife across Boulder's OSMP. Of the 580 photos captured, about 400 were bear selfies," OSMP says. Here's what they think the bear was doing.
Rangers say typically, animals might spot the cameras but just move on. This particular bear, however, seemed fascinated by the camera, which triggers when an animal walks in front of it. "In this instance, a bear took a special interest in one of our wildlife cameras and took the opportunity to capture hundreds of 'selfies,'" says Phillip Yates, a spokesperson for Open Space and Mountain Parks.
According to Yates, the cameras "provide us with a unique opportunity to learn more about how local species use the landscape around us while minimizing our presence in sensitive habitats. These pictures made us laugh, and we thought others would, too.
It's very unusual for anyone to see wildlife in this context, which makes the bear selfies even more special. "Every day, scores of animal species furtively scurry across Boulder landscapes to search for food and to find resting places. Most often, no one — not even City of Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks (OSMP) staff — ever sees them," an OSMP spokesperson says.
"But sometimes OSMP staff is fortunate enough to get an up-close look at local wildlife thanks to a system of motion-detecting cameras that passively capture snapshots and videos of animals residing in their natural state," Yates says.
The cameras are a helpful tool for understanding more about wildlife patterns in Colorado. "Sometimes we put cameras in locations where we think we'll encounter enigmatic fauna like American beavers or black bears," says Christian Nunes, a wildlife ecologist with OSMP.
"We are fortunate to live in an area with a rich diversity of wildlife species, and these cameras help us to learn what animals are really out there and what they are up to over the course of a day, a week, or even years," Nunes adds.
Using secret cameras means the animals are not harassed or frightened by rangers and researchers. "The motion-detecting cameras provide us a unique opportunity to learn more about how local species use the landscape around us while minimizing our presence in sensitive habitats," says Will Keeley, senior wildlife ecologist for Open Space and Mountain Parks explained on the department's website.
"These cameras play an important role in helping OSMP staff identify important wildlife areas. The information we collect from them is used to recommend habitat-protective measures to help protect sensitive natural areas."
Boulder OSMP posted pictures of the bear on their Twitter account. "Recently, a bear discovered a wildlife camera that we use to monitor wildlife across #Boulder open space. Of the 580 photos captured, about 400 were bear selfies.🤣," the caption reads. OSMP made a point that the pictures were taken last year, as most bears should be hibernating in winter.
