Tampa, FL -- The part of town where a 6-foot black bear was captured Tuesday isn't exactly in the sticks. It's a busy area, right next to a noisy theme park and plenty of traffic.
“He was just sitting there. Looked like a teenager. Wasn't bothering anyone,” said Amos Brown, whose tree the bear climbed.
Brown can see and hear plenty of commotion from his front yard. Noisy traffic. Kids screaming at nearby Adventure Island water park.
To give you any idea of how urban his neighborhood is, he’s got burglar bars on the windows. Who knew they’d also be handy at keeping out bears.
“You just think that because of cars and city, and buildings that they're not here. But, as you can see they're here,” said Brown.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission's bear distribution map puts most of Hillsborough County in the "occasional" category -- one step up from rare -- when it comes to bear habitat.
In fact, it’s so uncommon, that the first Tampa police officer to spot the animal Tuesday morning thought maybe it might be a big dog.
“He was pretty calm, so things went relatively textbook,” said FWC’s Lt. Steve DeLacure, who tranquilized the bear.
Kim Feaste didn't think twice about recently putting a trampoline in his backyard for his daughter Bryanna. Now?
“You can imagine. A bear, a trampoline and the kids? Oh my goodness. This is scary,” said Feaste.
“I think I don't want to come outside at the back porch,” said Bryanna.
FWC is about to consider holding another controversial bear hunt.
Ironically, less than three weeks ago, Hillsborough County commissioners voted unanimously -- although symbolically -- to oppose it.
The board was sending a message to FWC, but now the bears aren't just someone else's issue, they’re here.
That’s mind-boggling for neighbors like Brando Ruiz, who worries his 6-year-old Chihuahua Snoopy could’ve been a quick meal.
The whole thing has him wondering. “How he came here. How he walked so far and how he crossed so many people -- so many houses -- just trying to find a place to hide out.”
How this particular bear got quite so far into town is still a mystery.
The plan was to examine the bear and then release it into the wild.
But FWC says as development infringes on the bears’ natural habitat, even people living in urban areas need to be more careful about their own habits which can attract bears.
That means tightly covering trash cans.
Bears might also be attracted to wildlife feeders, composting areas and fruit trees.
