North Carolina bear marked with 'Trump 2020' sticker

A $5,000 reward was offered for any information on who placed a Trump campaign ad on a bear.

AUGUST 4, 2020 07:19

A bear (photo credit: AP) — A bear

(photo credit: AP)

A North Carolina-based animal rights group has offered a $5,000 reward to find who is responsible for putting a "Trump 2020" sticker on a black bear's tracking tag, the organization said on Facebook.

"Whoever put these political stickers on these bears is cruel and heartless," Help Asheville Bears (HAB) wrote, noting that this is not the first occurrence. In fact, this is the second time someone placed political endorsement on a bear's tracking tag, with local news outlet the Asheville Citizen Times reported in September 2019 finding a Trump sticker on a bear's collar, though it is unknown if it is the same bear.

"HAB and our followers hope to stop and expose you. This is now the second bear this happened to, which can only mean either someone in the study is doing this or it is someone in the public. Either way, a full investigation needs to be done."

Bears are NOT Billboards! Second black bear in Asheville,NC confirmed with political sticker on tracking collar....
Posted by Help Asheville Bears-HAB on Friday, July 31, 2020

Last week, Asheville resident Shelia Chapman spotted and photographed the bear relaxing on her front porch.

"I believe this is an abhorrent practicum" Chapman told HAB, according to CNN. "These bears are already suffering enough with the heavy collars and metal ear mutilations. But to put a political sticker on the collar? No words can describe my anger and sadness."

The bear was tagged as part of a study by The North Carolina Urban/Suburban Bear Study.

Speaking to CNN, Dr. Chris DePerono, one of the researchers involved in the study, said that the researchers do not condone the political advertisement, or indeed "anyone approaching a bear for any purpose."

"Unfortunately, someone has habituated this bear to the point where it has lost its natural wariness of people, allowing this person to place the sticker on the collar," DePerno said. "The person that has helped this bear become food dependent and habituated is putting humans and the safety of the bear at risk."

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Despite the unwitting endorsement, the bear is not eligible to vote in the 2020 presidential elections, CNN reported.