When Scott Butterworth took up bee keeping, he had no idea it would turn his backyard in Montgomery County, Maryland, into a bear buffet.
"It was my COVID project... The idea that wildlife would be attracted to them was not something we had any consideration of," Butterworth said. "This is suburbia. Who expects a bear in their backyard in suburbia?"
But come he did–a young black bear with a taste for honey.
Butterworth called police and the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR), and they put out a humane bear trap right next to one of the hives. After two days of chowing down on honey, the bear returned yet again on Sunday night. The smell of doughnuts, molasses and vanilla used to bait the trap was just too tempting, and the bear walked right in.
329 medal events. 32 sports. Endless drama. Catch all the action at the Paris Olympics. Sign up for our free Olympics Headlines newsletter.
"They set the trap and around 11 o’clock we heard the door slam shut, so the job is done. And then just six hours of listening to an unhappy bear trying to escape," Butterworth said.
The Rockville City Police Department and DNR announced the bear was in custody at about 9 a.m. Monday.
“This morning RCPD and DNR safely and successfully trapped and relocated the Rockville bear to a new home outside the City and County,” @RockvilleCityPD tweeted.
The bear was transported in a green bear trap on the back of a pick-up truck. “Danger” was written on the side of the trap.
Butterworth asked the folks with DNR where the bear was being taken, but that information was top secret.
The Rockville City police had warned residents Friday to be on alert for bears in the area after a different one was spotted near King Farm and College Parkway.
“Stay alert, calm, do not approach or attempt to capture the bear,” @RockvilleCityPD tweeted.
Bear sightings were reported across the county in April, including backyards and alleys located in Bethesda, Kensington and Chevy Chase.
