Florida black bear takes stroll along street in Naples

NAPLES, Fla. — A Florida black bear was caught taking a stroll down Fifth Avenue South in Naples early Sunday morning. 

“We need to find something for the bear to wear, do we know if it’s a girl or a boy? We don’t know. It didn’t really want to come in the shop,” said Myki Romano, a clerk at the Jean-Pierre Klifa store on 5th Ave. 

NBC2 has also received reports of a bear attempting to sail on a catamaran last week at the Naples Sail & Yacht Club near Tin City. 

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Other viewers have shared images of a bear sunning himself near the Naples Pier, as well as giving a family a wake-up call just south of downtown. 

“We’ve seen the bear on the boat, I think it’s the same bear. They are seeing the bear on like 11th St., 17th St., a lot of pictures — people are seeing the bear,” added Romano. 

“It looks like there’s this nice little wildlife corridor along Rock Creek that’s right into downtown Naples, I think that was his way in,” said Nora Demers, a biology professor at Florida Gulf Coast University. 

According to staff at the Naples Zoo, approximately 3,000 black bears live in the State of Florida, primarily residing in rural areas, like Golden Gate Estates and the Florida Everglades. 

They are attracted to more rural areas due to deforestation and available food sources. 

“On trash day, that’s when you take it out to the curb. Don’t take it out before. Bears smell better than hound dogs, they will smell when the trash is out. They actually will learn when trash day is. They will learn the routine… and they will be back next week and the week after that,” said Mary-Kathryn Mitchell the Carnivore Supervisor at the Naples Zoo. 

Naples police and the Florida Fish & Wildlife  Commission are aware of the bear and encourage all to keep their distance if spotted.