Bear Wins the Internet With 400 Selfies on Wildlife Trail Camera | "Felt Cute, Might Delete Later"

Bears are charming and frightening too (if they aren't teddies). What's surprising is that these beautiful creatures are aware that they are beautiful. A vain bear who had access to a motion-capture camera has left the internet envious of their slaying selfie-taking skills. The Open Space and Mountain Parks organization (OSMP) of the City of Boulder employs nine motion-detective cameras across its 46,000-acre land system. These cameras are typically placed in high-traffic areas such as road underpasses and fence lines to capture enigmatic fauna. On November 24, 2022, a curious bear took a break from preparing for hibernation to investigate one of OSMP's cameras, resulting in some adorable selfies, reports My Modern Met. 

"The motion-detecting cameras provide us a unique opportunity to learn more about how local species use the landscape around us while minimizing our presence in sensitive habitats," said Will Keeley, senior wildlife ecologist for Open Space and Mountain Parks, said in a press release. "These cameras play an important role in helping OSMP staff identify important wildlife areas. The information we collect from them is used to recommend habitat-protective measures to help protect sensitive natural areas."

OSMP shared a small selection of the 400 bear photos on social media, which drew a lot of attention. Many cub fans however hoped to find all 400 of the images somewhere. OSMP stated: "We kept 24 pictures that made us laugh the most and deleted the others. Wildlife cameras help us learn what animals are out there and what they're up to over the course of a day, a week, or even years. And sometimes, that means taking a bunch of selfies, just like us."

The photoset resurfaced online in January 2023. "Recently, a bear discovered a wildlife camera that we use to monitor wildlife across #Boulder open space," OSMP said in a tweet. Around 400 of the 580 photos taken were bear selfies. Many users were initially concerned about the word "recently" because the bear should be in hibernation in January.

"This came from last year. It was originally posted on our Instagram account," OSMP clarified. After their fears were allayed, Twitter users all over the world re-shared photos of the curious forest creature. OSMP's tweet has received over 8,000 retweets, 50,000 likes, and 19 million views. This furry forest dweller demonstrates that striking a pose is always in style, regardless of the season.

The photogenic bear got a lot of reactions on Twitter and hilarious descriptions in the comments. Here are a few funny comments.