It’s not every day you see a black bear with two cubs riding piggyback across one of the biggest bodies of water in Massachusetts. But that’s exactly what angler Izzy Drost of Greenfield captured on video last week while fishing with his buddy, John LaQuire, on the Quabbin Reservoir.
The pair spotted a sow black bear paddling hard through open water with a pair of young cubs clinging to her back. He caught the whole thing on video, and the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife shared it on its Facebook page.
“This heat has everyone looking to cool off, even this mama bear and her cubs! Black bears can often be seen swimming to cool off during hot summer months in both backyard swimming pools and natural bodies of water,” MDFW wrote in its post. “Bears may also swim to travel or avoid perceived threats.”
Drost managed to record four separate videos of the sow and her tiny cubs, who appeared to be making their way toward an island in the reservoir.
“I have posted some great videos of wildlife that I have captured with my cameras before, but this has to be one of the best videos yet,” Drost wrote in his original Facebook post. (He also said that he and his buddy caught some nice smallmouths on their trip.)
Massachusetts has a booming black bear population, with an estimated 4,500 animals statewide, according to MDFW. Not only are their numbers increasing, but their distribution is also expanding, with their range pushing eastward each year. The Quabbin Reservoir, one of the largest man-made public water supplies in the United States, is situated in the heart of prime Massachusetts bear country.
Read Next: Black Bear Fights Off Two Gators While Swimming Across a Florida River
As for the video, it’s a rare look at a wild animal doing what it takes to keep its offspring alive.
Read the full article here
