Critter Corner: Watch Bears Acting Like Humans

Bears are some of the smartest animals on four legs, which is pretty scary considering they are also one of the largest. Some bears have learned to do some extraordinary things with dexterity that should give us all pause. If they keep it up, we could very well be looking at a Planet of the Bears scenario. Just kidding, but they are pretty darn talented. We found a bear that does Kung Fu, several that walk on two legs and another that eats on a picnic table.

Kung Fu Bear

A few years ago a video went viral of a bear named Claude who had apparently mastered the art of Kung Fu. Claude, an Asian black bear, arrived at Asa Zoo in Hiroshima in 2002 where his keepers started giving him long sticks to play with. Claude has since learned the ancient practice of the warrior masters. This is one bear you don’t want to mess with. He even pulls off a trick at the 1:15 mark. His skills are so remarkable, viewers suspected the video was manipulated. Not so, reports a zookeeper at the time. 

Walking on Two Legs

A bear walking on two legs? Now this you gotta see. Could this be the truth behind every Bigfoot sighting in the world? Bears can actually walk on two legs if they really want to, and not just in captivity. A New Jersey bear last year was filmed walking on two legs through a residential neighborhood. It’s seen in another wild bear here. The best look at the upright bear walking technique, which requires a laid-back quick-strutting posture comes from the following video of a bear in captivity. 

Bear at Picnic Table

After a meme of a Florida black bear at Naples Zoo went viral, zookeepers brought the image to life in a video The meme showed the bear at a picnic table eating vegetables with the caption, “I wonder if there is more to life than eating honey and stealing picnic baskets?”

Photo credit: Flickr Creative Commons