Bear surprises Florida beachgoers by swimming out of the ocean

13 June 2023 , 16:23

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Bear surprises Florida beachgoers by swimming out of the ocean

With Florida's weather hitting the high 80s, everyone's enjoying a fun beach day — including a bear cub who shocked beachgoers when it swam out of the ocean and pranced around on shore.

Yesterday, beach goers in Dublin, Florida, got the shock of a lifetime when a black bear cub decided to enjoy a dip in the Gulf of Mexico, just like everyone else.

Beachgoers immediately whipped out their phones to document the rare occurrence. The viral videos show a medium-sized black bear cup playfully splashing about in the ocean and then emerging as shocked tourists and residents enjoyed the sight, while keeping a respectful distance.

Chris Barron, an eyewitness who shared one of the videos documenting the bear's beach adventure, tweeted: “A bear just swam from way out in the ocean to shore in Destin. Insane.”

Jennifer Majors Smith posted her own footage with the bear and shared: “Never have I ever….seen a black bear swim up out of the Gulf Coast and onto the beach (and I’m from Pensacola).”

Woman discovers huge black bear hibernating under decking in her back garden

A Florida bear emerges out of the ocean and onto a crowded beach (@cbcpa79)

Smith, in an interview with AI.com, recounted: “A man was yelling out ‘Bear!’ You would expect ‘Shark’ or ‘Dolphin’ but not ‘Bear.’ It came out of the Gulf and look tired but relieved. We were all shocked by and amazed to see what we saw. We were all glad to see him safe from the water.”

When the bear cub was done playing, it ran towards the sand dunes and disappeared behind a condominium.

While the sun-seekers on the beach were shocked, it turns out that this isn't the first time a bear has shown up on Florida's shores.

While the sun-seekers on the beach were shocked, it turns out that this isn't the first time a bear has shown up on Florida's shores (@cbcpa79)

“It’s not uncommon,” said Captain Chris Kirby, a charter boat captain for Charter Boat Backlash, which operates out of Destin. “There are a lot of bears at Eglin Air Force Base. They swim across the bay. Sometimes they go for a joy swim.”

Yelena Mandenberg