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Bear smiles, waves captured on Colorado wildlife camera

A bear living on the 46,000 acres of land that the City of Boulder keeps an eye on with nine wildlife cameras was captured on cam bearing a smile and a wave.

BOULDER, Colo. — A Boulder-area bear was caught striking poses, bearing smiles and even waving at one of many wildlife cameras that the City of Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks (OSMP) uses to monitor sensitive habitats. 

The bear was originally captured hamming it up for the camera back in November, and the original Instagram post is making another round on social media thanks to Twitter – with delight from animal lovers. 

One IG follower noted, "That fourth one is his Tinder profile pic." Another admirer commented, "What's the bear's IG handle?" and one commenter adoring the shots said, "Does this make me look fat? What about this side? At least 10 lbs more I hope?" 

Phil Yates with Boulder OSMP said the staff uses nine wildlife cameras to monitor the 46,000 acres of open space and mountain parks. 

"They provide us a unique opportunity to learn more about how local species are using the area without disturbing their habitat," he said.

OSMP blogged about the wildlife cameras used to track bears, deer and other animals. 

The cameras are activated to snap pictures when an animal's motion sets off the flash. The cameras are also able to capture video in 10 to 30-second intervals – and at night, the cameras are armed with infrared light so as not to disturb nocturnal species. 

“Sometimes we put cameras in locations where we think we’ll encounter enigmatic fauna like American beavers or black bears,” said Christian Nunes, a wildlife ecologist with OSMP. “We are fortunate to live in an area with a rich diversity of wildlife species, and these cameras help us to learn what animals are really out there, and what they are up to over the course of a day, a week, or even years.”

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