Wildlife experts have successfully freed a black bear that had endured two years with a hard plastic lid trapped around its neck.
The animal was first spotted as a cub in 2023 on a trail camera in Michigan's northern Lower Peninsula. Following that initial sighting, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) launched a sustained effort to locate the elusive creature. The recent trapping operation allowed specialists to safely remove the obstruction, bringing a long-awaited end to the bear's ordeal.
“It’s pretty incredible that the bear survived and was able to feed itself,” state bear specialist Cody Norton said Wednesday. “The neck was scarred and missing hair, but the bear was in much better condition than we expected it to be.”
The bear appeared again on a camera in late May, still wearing the barrel lid, and the DNR responded by setting a cylindrical trap and safely luring him inside. The bear was anesthetized, and the lid was cut off on June 3. He eventually woke up and rambled away.
Norton said it's not precisely known how the lid got stuck on the bear's neck. Bear baiting is legal in Michigan, but the hole on a barrel lid typically must be large enough to avoid what happened to this bear.
It also isn't known how the 110-pound (49.9-kilogram) bear slept through winters wearing the uncomfortable accessory.
“We were pleasantly surprised. It was still able to make a living like a pretty typical bear,” Norton said.
