LAKE MARY, Fla. – And kids thought they only needed to worry about their parents stealing their Halloween candy.
Video shot on Tuesday night shows a black bear eating candy in the front yard of a home in central Florida.
Footage shows the bear standing on its hind legs with its front paws on a table adorned with pumpkins and glowing Halloween decorations.
As the bear turns its head, it can be seen chewing and chomping away at the food it had found on the table.
Fall is the time of year when bears become more active in search for food, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. This is because the animals start to consume more calories, about 20,000 calories per day, in preparation for winter hibernation.
WATCH: TWO BEARS BUMBLE THROUGH THE PORCH OF A FLORIDA HOME
The FWC said bears will sate their caloric intake by taking advantage of easily accessible food, even if it means wandering from wild spaces to neighborhoods, such as those where candy was left out for Halloween.
“Any accessible food source, such as unsecured garbage, pet food or bird seed, can be enticing to a hungry bear preparing for the winter, potentially drawing them into conflict with people,” said Mike Orlando, FWC Bear Management Program Coordinator. “However, if bears don’t find a food source in a neighborhood, they’ll move on.”
The FWC recommends the following to minimize bear interactions:
They added that while black bears are typically not aggressive, the animals are capable of injuring humans and pets, particularly when provoked.
Black bears are the only native species of bear in Florida, the FWC said. An estimated 4,000 black bears can be found in the Sunshine State.