Bear Breaks Into California Zoo to Play With Other Bears

A young black bear caused quite a stir at Sequoia Park Zoo in Eureka, California — not by escaping, but by breaking in. Last week, a zoo employee discovered the wild bear standing curiously with its nose pressed against the enclosure fence of the zoo’s resident black bears. What followed was a surprising and harmless encounter that left zoo staff and visitors both puzzled and amused.

According to zoo supervisor Christine Noel, the bear was “a very polite visitor,” staying on the boardwalk path, keeping all four paws on the ground, and not attempting to climb any barriers. Noel first spotted the uninvited guest while inspecting the zoo’s elevated Redwood Sky Walk, a 100-foot-high trail through towering redwood trees, where the young bear was seen “interacting” with the zoo’s three resident bears — Tule, Ishŭng, and Kunabulilh — through the fence.

Once staff realized the bear wasn’t one of theirs, emergency procedures were quickly initiated. “Is this a drill?” one employee radioed as the team mobilized, thinking the situation too bizarre to be real. Eureka police arrived to help manage the crowd, joking on Facebook that it’s not every day they help with “crowd control for a bear who doesn’t quite understand ‘stay behind the railings.’” Thankfully, the wild bear never came into contact with visitors.

Zoo director Jim Campbell-Spickler said the bear, estimated to be about 1.5 years old, appeared calm and curious, going “nose-to-nose” with the other bears in what seemed like polite introductions. It even played with some of their toys before a wildlife warden gently guided it back into the nearby forest.

How the bear managed to breach the zoo’s eight-foot perimeter fence, topped with barbed wire, remains a mystery. Campbell-Spickler suggested the animal may have climbed a tree and dropped in accidentally, later finding itself unable to get out. “We live adjacent to a beautiful 67-acre redwood forest that is very wild,” he said, emphasizing that the fence remains secure. Online, locals speculated humorously about the bear’s motives — perhaps it was looking for snacks, friends, or even a job as an “ambearssador,” as one commenter joked.

Others wondered if this wasn’t the first visit, recalling signs of bear scat near the enclosure in the past. Whether it came for company or curiosity, the bear’s brief visit left everyone smiling — and gave California’s oldest zoo an unforgettable story to tell.