Bear comes down from tree outside Rex Hospital in Raleigh, leaves city without incident

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- The young black bear who spent Tuesday up a tree outside Rex Hospital in Raleigh has made his way out of town.

North Carolina Wildlife Commission said it used jelly doughnuts and sardines to lure the bear out of the tree early Wednesday morning.

Once the bear came down, it quickly ran off and is no longer a threat to the public.

Wildlife Management Division Chief Brad Howard said the bear was likely a male black bear between 1-1.5 years old. Howard said this time of year the momma bears push their sons off on their own as she starts to prepare for her next litter.

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The young bear's adventure in the city was an innocent mistake, according to Howard. He said the bear was likely wandering around Monday night into Tuesday morning.

Then when the sun rose and he saw all the people in the area, he scampered up a tree for safety.

"This is a rather traumatic experience for him right now," Howard said. "His thinking right now is: 'How can I get out of here safely?'"

This scenario is becoming more common throughout North Carolina as black bear populations rebound and grow and human settlements continue to expand.

Howard said the biggest threat in these cases is the bear wandering into traffic, getting hit and causing a traffic incident.

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