Black bear found dead along shoulder of I-4 in Orlando

ORLANDO, Fla. (FOX 35 ORLANDO) - Police say a dead bear was found along the westbound shoulder of Interstate 4 in Orlando.

Orlando police tell news outlets the black bear was spotted around 5 a.m. Wednesday near John Young Parkway entrance ramp.  Police say they're not sure what happened to the bear because there was no sign of damage from a car at the scene.  An investigation continues.

Black bears are popping up in the most unexpected places.  In addition to the bear that was killed along I-4, another was spotted by Orlando Executive, and yet another along Curry Ford Road.

Bobby Patal was on his way home from watching a rocket launch early Tuesday morning, when he spotted a bear in the middle of the road.

“I saw a black bear crossing the road from left to right and went into that neighborhood, as I said, I was not absolutely sure. I looked at him quite carefully and realized that is a black bear,” said Patel.

He explained that he had to dodge the bear, something he never imagined he would have to do in the middle of the city on Curry Ford Road.

“Quite scary, especially nearby the airport,  busy place, you don’t expect wild bear to be around you,” said Patel.

Mike Orlando with Florida Fish and Wildlife says bear sightings in urban areas is normal for this time of year.

“We’re getting young bears, a year and a half or two and a half years that are leaving their territory with mom mostly and they’re trying to find new areas on their own,” said Orlando.

It’s called dispersal, and bears are roaming all around Florida.

“We have one on the edge of Tampa right now, we had one in Jacksonville just a couple of weeks ago, we had one in Cocoa Beach, made it all the way up through Daytona.  Now he’s in Palm Coast, so they are moving all over the state,” said Orlando.

Orlando said nothing can really be done, because the bears are moving so quickly.

“In most of these cases, the bears are moving three to five miles per night, so there’s no way to be in front of them to catch then and take them out of the city,” he added.

Orlando said the dispersal season should taper off in the next few weeks.