If you haven’t had your own close encounter with a black bear in Central Florida, you soon will have your chance.

  • Bear exhibit opens Aug. 1 at Central Florida Zoo
  • Exhibit teaches about black bears
  • Bears' outside exposure limited
  • LIVING WITH BLACK BEARS: Complete Coverage

Next Tuesday, a black bear exhibit at the Central Florida Zoo in Sanford will open to the public.

On Wednesday morning, friends and family of people influential in the making of the exhibit got a first look at it. The Bass family has seen black bears up close before.

“We saw a huge black bear walking between us and the house,” said Eric Bass.

But at the exhibit, the family can look at the bears without worrying about their safety.

“I think this is a great opportunity for us as Central Floridians to learn more about the bears, and how we can successfully cohabitate with them and them with us,” said Bass.

The two bears in the exhibit, which are siblings, got too used to people. Because of that, Florida Fish and Wildlife says they can’t release them back into the wild.

So in the exhibit, they’re now helping teach people what black bears are really like, and why it’s so important to keep food out of reach.

“We don’t want to attract them, so that’s why we want to put away our birdseed at night and close our garage doors,” said Central Florida Zoo curator Elena Lamar.

The bears’ real home is inside a large building behind the exhibit.

The zoo is limiting their time in the outdoor exhibit to just a couple of hours early in the morning until they get used to their new surroundings.

So far, they appear to be making themselves at home.

“One climbed up into the very top of a tree, which was very cool,” said Whitney Bass.

“We often see them by themselves walking and trying to get into a tree, but you get to see them interacting with each other and the playfulness they have for each other,” said Eric Bass.