Disney, wildlife officials used paintball guns, air horns to capture bear in Magic Kingdom

Air horns, paintball guns, slingshots – oh my!

By Grayson Keglovic on Tue, Oct 24, 2023 at 9:59 pm

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Disney, wildlife officials used paintball guns, air horns to capture bear in Magic Kingdom

Photo via Adobe

Disney and wildlife officials appear to have taken some unorthodox measures in capturing a wild black bear spotted last month at Disney World.

The 150-pound bear was seen at Disney’s Magic Kingdom Sept. 18, causing temporary shutdowns of several rides and areas of the park.

Newly released body-worn camera footage obtained by WKBG 6 shows Disney Wildlife Management and Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission officials using air horns, paintball guns and slingshots to stun the bear down from a 35-foot tree and off Disney property.

Black bear sighting at Disney’s Magic Kingdom causes park shutdowns: Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s bear-management program are working to capture and relocate the bear

While these methods may seem silly, they were effective in safely removing the bear from the park. According to Florida Wildlife Control, paintballs, bear spray and slingshots are all in compliance with FWC guidelines.

Although FWC generally recommends giving bears space and allowing them to leave an area on their own, officials deemed it necessary to put the bear to sleep temporarily with a dart gun.

FWC officials transported the bear to the Ocala National Forest, where it was safely released.

"During the fall, bears are more active as they search for food to pack on fat reserves for the winter. This particular bear was likely moving through the area searching for food," a previous statement from FWC said.

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