One recent morning in South Carolina, Brian Jones was easing into his day with a fresh cup of coffee when his wife’s sudden shout jolted him from his routine.
“I was just about to head out the door when my wife said, ‘LOOK!’” Jones told The Dodo.
He turned toward the window — and immediately did a double-take.
There, standing upright just outside their home, was a towering dark figure. But it wasn’t a person.
It was a bear — perfectly balanced on two feet, helping himself to the Joneses’ bird feeder like a polite guest at a breakfast buffet.
“It’s not unusual to see bears around here,” Jones said. “But this one really caught our attention because he was standing just like a person.”
Amazed, Jones stayed still and watched, careful not to scare the bear away. Despite snacking on food meant for the birds, the bear seemed almost… courteous.
“He was being very careful with the bird feeder,” Jones said.
Jones captured the unusual moment on video, which quickly impressed viewers online. “I thought this was a person in a bear costume at first!” one commenter wrote.
After enjoying his snack, the bear calmly dropped back onto all fours and lumbered back into the woods, disappearing as quietly as he’d come.
Now, the Jones family is taking extra steps to avoid encouraging any more close encounters. They’ve started bringing the bird feeder indoors during the hours when bears are most active.
“We definitely want to coexist peacefully,” Jones said. “But we’d prefer not to offer an open buffet.”
