Guest Posted January 9, 2013 Share Posted January 9, 2013 I may of mentioned this story to some select individuals, but I wanted to share it with the forum to see what you guys think. It is a story that that took place this summer, but still has me scratching my head. I will post some links to articles at bottom. An english couple was traveling down I 41 from Miami to their vacation home, in or near Naples. They hit what they assumed was a bear, because of its massive size. When the police investigated the report, they estimated whatever animal the couple hit had to weigh at least 800 lbs. Typical black bears in south florida are just not that big. More around 300-450 lbs, depending on age and sex. So was this a monster bear roaming the woods of the big cypress or a misidentification? The"bear" was never found. I contacted a ranger in the big cypress yesterday, and he said this: "The area where the accident occurred is about 20 miles west of the Preserve, so I am not familiar with the story. During conversations with FL Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission staff I had not heard anything about it, so I am assuming that the bear was not found." Im not saying this was for sure not a bear, but i'm not 100% convinced. I don't know how true this is, but I was told this story by Dave Shealy. He said the police ( or a police buddy ) had asked him to do his own investigation into the accident. I have no idea if he ever did. When I asked him about it about 2 months ago, he never responded. http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2012/jun/06/tourists-strike-black-bear-with-suv-like-hitting/ ( make sure you check out all 4 photos of vehicle ) http://www.winknews.com/Local-Florida/2012-06-06/Tourists-car-collides-with-bear-on-US-41#.UPBZYeQmdCI ( news broadcast ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norseman Posted January 9, 2013 Admin Share Posted January 9, 2013 http://www.fntpost.com/Products/Mountain+Lions+Bears/Blue+Ridge+Outdoors'+Bear+Crazy+II+DVD A 652 lbs black bear taken in North Carolina! SIX HUNDRED AND FIFTY TWO POUNDS! I realize it's a ways from Florida, but it's certainly plausible for a black bear in the SE to get rather large. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 9, 2013 Share Posted January 9, 2013 The hair shown wedged into the front of the SUV doesn't appear to be very long, but that really doesn't mean anything I guess. I would think that if they struck a squatch there would be damage across the hood too, unless they were in quadruped mode. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Posted January 9, 2013 Share Posted January 9, 2013 Dave Shealy - See hoaxed Skunkape footage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 9, 2013 Share Posted January 9, 2013 @martin, I know all about Dave Shealy's past. @norseman, it is rare that a black bear in sl get that large. I believe the article states the largest one on record was in the the 600s and even that was considered massive. So 800 lb bear? It seems as likely as bigfoot to me. lol! Who knows..... also the officers estimated it was at least 800lbs...it could of been more than that. http://www.wildflorida.com/wildlife/mammals/Florida_Black_Bear.php http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/education/interactive/springscoast/blackbear.shtml http://myfwc.com/wildlifehabitats/profiles/mammals/land/black-bear/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norseman Posted January 9, 2013 Admin Share Posted January 9, 2013 @martin, I know all about Dave Shealy's past. @norseman, it is rare that a black bear in sl get that large. I believe the article states the largest one on record was in the the 600s and even that was considered massive. So 800 lb bear? It seems as likely as bigfoot to me. lol! Who knows..... also the officers estimated it was at least 800lbs...it could of been more than that. Black bears get that big. http://www.poconorecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20101119/NEWS/11190341/-1/NEWS01 The heaviest black bear ever recorded in Pennsylvania was shot and killed by a bow hunter just north of Fernwood Resort in Pike County on Monday. The Pennsylvania Game Commission confirmed that David Price of Barrett Township killed the 17-year-old bruin, which had an estimated live weight of 879 pounds. The bear had a field-dressed weight of 744 pounds. Price's bear was 15 pounds heavier than the state's previous record holder, a 864-pound bear killed by Doug Kristiansen of Dingman Township in 2003. That bear was also shot in Pike County. "This bear could be No. 1 in the world," game commission spokesman Tim Conway said of Price's bear. The world record is determined by skull size. After 60 days, the bear's skull will be measured to determine where it will stand in the record books. The world record skull is more than 23 inches wide, Conway said. Attempts to reach Price on Thursday were unsuccessful. Every year bears killed in Pennsylvania are entered into the Boone and Crocket rifle record books. Bears that have a skull measurement of 20 inches or greater are eligible. This bear is unique and will be remembered because it was killed during Pennsylvania's first statewide archery hunt and could be ranked as high as No. 1 in the Pope and Young archery records. Since 1992, six bears weighing at least 800 pounds have been killed in Pennsylvania. /////////////////////////// I used the N. Carolina bear as a first reference because it is closer to Florida. Is it rare? Sure but it's definitely not outside the realm of possibility. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 9, 2013 Share Posted January 9, 2013 yes....but not south florida. I am only referring to the black bears of south florida which are typically smaller Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norseman Posted January 9, 2013 Admin Share Posted January 9, 2013 yes....but not south florida. I am only referring to the black bears of south florida which are typically smaller Understood. I'm just suggesting that it is plausible for a black bear to get as big as 800 lbs. Did the family or any one at the crash site suggest it was something other than a bear? In my mind at least something 8 feet tall would have came over the hood into the wind shield. I'm glad they are safe though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 9, 2013 Share Posted January 9, 2013 Pretty crazy that bears get that big in Florida. If it was a squatch it had to be on all fours at the time because the damage was low. The people never mentioned if they saw the face and probably just assumed it was a bear. I'm surprised they weren't able to follow a blood trail to find it, but they might not have tried too hard. That is a big suv and it had to cause a lot of damage even to an animal that large. Bottom line, as usual is who knows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest teria Posted January 9, 2013 Share Posted January 9, 2013 It's a shame that the hair wasn't collected to be analysed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockape Posted January 9, 2013 Share Posted January 9, 2013 It was a Sheriff deputy that came up with the 800 lb estimate. How did he arrive at that? Is he some sort of expert at estimating weight? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 9, 2013 Share Posted January 9, 2013 @rockape, im sure he is more qualified at estimating such things than me....but I have no idea. Maybe police are trained for such, being they are often the first to respond to the scene of an accident. Understood. I'm just suggesting that it is plausible for a black bear to get as big as 800 lbs. Did the family or any one at the crash site suggest it was something other than a bear? In my mind at least something 8 feet tall would have came over the hood into the wind shield. I'm glad they are safe though. I understand what you are saying as well. It just doesn't seem as likely a bear would get that big down here. Why there is such a size difference, I dunno. From the interviews i've heard, it seems it all happened so fast...the people just assumed it was a bear, due to it being dark and very large. I also think it was too dark to see clearly. If you have ever driven 41 at night.....you would know just how dark it can get. In south florida, between the two coasts....there is nothing. Just swamps forests and wildlife. lol Im thinking about the damage I saw to the truck and wondering how a bear could of wandered off so far that he was never found? it could happen, but man, you would think there would of been a trail of blood as someone mentioned earlier. Doesn't make sense to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest OntarioSquatch Posted January 9, 2013 Share Posted January 9, 2013 There is nothing in the story that indicates a possible Sasquatch/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David NC Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 http://www.fntpost.c...ar Crazy II DVD A 652 lbs black bear taken in North Carolina! SIX HUNDRED AND FIFTY TWO POUNDS! I realize it's a ways from Florida, but it's certainly plausible for a black bear in the SE to get rather large. current state record blackbear in NC is 880 lbs, it is also the world record.http://ncpedia.org/wildlife/black-bearFunny there was no blood on the vehicle, a lot of hair and in the one shot a couple of the hairs looked pretty long. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 Wild Hog perhaps? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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