One of Colorado\u2019s very hungry black bears was caught feasting on fresh-baked bread from a booth at the Aspen farmers market over the weekend.<\/p>\n
Videos of the bear stan<\/a>ding on its hind legs<\/a> to inhale baked goods from a table at the Louis Swiss booth in downtown Aspen on Saturday quickly racked up hundreds of thousands of views<\/a> and reactions on social media.<\/p>\n Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials got a report of the bear loitering in downtown Aspen while vendors were setting up the Aspen Saturday Market, spokesperson Joey Livingston said. <\/p>\n Aspen police hazed the bear while a CPW officer headed that way, and the bear climbed a tree and later left the area, Livingston said.<\/p>\n Colorado wildlife officials have recorded a record number of bear encounters<\/a> and conflicts this year as the state grapples with the effects of extreme drought \u2014 which means fewer natural food sources for bears and other animals.<\/p>\n Bears are now bulking up for winter hibernation, a state of compulsive feeding known as hyperphagia where they eat 20,000 calories day by feasting up to 22 hours.\n<\/p>\n Though bears are facing dwindling natural food sources, feeding bears and other Colorado wildlife is illegal<\/a> as it disrupts normal behavior, spreads disease and can make wild animals comfortable around humans, which makes them more likely to attack pets and people \u2014 and thus need to be euthanized<\/a>, according to CPW.<\/p>\n