A village in Bhutan has been having trouble with a roving local drunkard as of late—except this one weighs 250 pounds and has two-inch claws.
For the second time this year, a Himalayan black bear was reportedly caught rummaging through a small food store in Babesa, devouring snacks and guzzling alcohol. According to Newsweek, the bear has a particular preference for liquor. It downed an excessive amount of XXX rum mixed with “ara,” a traditional alcoholic beverage made from rice or wheat.
This is hardly the first story of a bear going after humans’ munchies or alcohol. A few years ago, a bear made headlines in Washington State when it broken into a cooler, chugged 36 cans of Rainier beer, refused to touch the cans of Busch, and then passed out in the campground. (For the record, the National Park Service recommends that anyone camping near bear habitat keep all food and alcohol in bear-safe containers.)
As for the Bhutan bear? Store owner Ugyen Pelzom spotted the animal chowing down on her inventory in the middle of the night and immediately called the authorities. Before they could arrive on the scene, the bear had staggered back to the forest it had come from. Pelzom left more rum out the following night to see if she could lure the bear out long enough for forestry officials to capture it. Instead, the bear returned, slurped down all the rum, and vanished.
An official from the village’s Department of Forest and Park Services told Kuensel Online that the bears in the surrounding forests around town have been slowly making their way further into the area. He cited improperly stored food waste as one of the leading causes of the increased bear encounters. As of publishing, the alcoholic bear has yet to be captured. Village authorities plan to relocate the bear if they get the opportunity to take it into custody.
If you happen to encounter a bear in camp (or see one chowing down on your food in the middle of the night), keep your distance and contact the proper wildlife authorities right away.
He probably doesn’t know some of the things many of us did not know when we started, like that it is poison, that it kills more Americans each year than opioids or cigarettes combined, that it causes cancer (breast, bladder, liver…and more) . I like bears and I hope he gets over his addiction faster than I did.
Fab
This is an interesting and humorous story about a drunken bear with a taste for alcohol. It’s good to know that efforts are being made to relocate the bear and prevent future encounters.
Ann
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