Black bear sighting in Palm Beach County

LOXAHATCHEE, FL -- Could it have been a bear? That is the question being asked in Loxahatchee.

A camper said he spotted a black bear in the KOA Campground, which is on Lion Country Safari property.

"It's a needle in a haystack here with a bear in the woods," says Lion Country Safari Wildlife Director Terry Wolf.

Bear hunts are not easy. Take it from me.

I've never been on a bear hunt before, but I joined Wolf on his and we found...

"Not much," says Wolf.

Armidillo tracks were the only tracks we found.

Palm Beach County wildlife experts packed Lion Country Safari property in search of a small black bear.

The camper told Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office deputies that he spotted a black bear, around 1 a.m. Wednesday.

Campgrounds are known for bear sightings, but not KOA.

Ralph Huff says he has managed the KOA Campground with his wife Pam for about seven years.

We asked him if he has ever seen a bear.

"No... seen a lot of hogs," says Huff.  

Pete Simpson is staying along Llama Lane, the same lane the bear apparently visited.

Pete heard news of the sighting, but the Tennessee native is not concerned.

"It is funny, I mean I've been from here all the way down to the Keys. I mean, I've seen key deer, but never no black bear here in Florida," says Simpson.

Wolf says it is possible a bear may have made its way here from the Naples area where black bears typically reside.

Wolf says if you see a bear, stay away from it and try to get inside.

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officials ask that you contact their Wildlife Alert Hotline, 1-888-404-FWCC, if you ever see a bear.

Pam Huff hopes she doesn't.

"Hope it's not true, yeah," says Huff.

---

---

LOXAHATCHEE, FL -- The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office is investigating a black bear sighting.

A man staying at the K-O-A campground on Lion Country Safari property in Loxahatchee claimed he spotted a 2-3 foot tall black bear when he came out of his trailer early Wednesday morning.

Sheriff's deputies responded to the campground and searched for the animal. But deputies found nothing.

Members of the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission joined in the search and Lion Country Safari wildlife teams also searched surrounding property.

Lion Country Safari Wildlife Director Terry Wolf says they take these reports very seriously.

"The chance of a bear coming this far to the east aren't that high but it does happen. They tend to get run out of their native lands over on the western part of the state this time of year," says Wolf.

Wolf says it's possible a bear may have been attracted to the campground because of the smell of food.

Wolf says black bears are large Florida predators and if you see them, avoid them.

"Get inside. Stay away from them. If you're camping out, you don't want to have food out or anything. The raccoons are probably more trouble than the bears are," says Wolf.

Wolf says that once the sun is up he plans to check for any tracks to determine if it was a bear, or another animal.

---

---