Most tourists flee when they spot bears roaming in public places. But a bear cub which stood on its hind legs and appeared to ask for a hug has caused a mini-sensation in Romania.
The cub that was with its mother was filmed standing up and gesturing to tourists traveling by car on the Transfăgărăşan mountain highway.
Its mother, standing a few yards didn’t appear bothered by the situation, adevarul.ro reported.
The young cub, which has been called ‘Yogi’ after comic book bear, went up to the tourists and seemed to invite them to give it a hug, almost as if he was in a film.
A video headlined „Meeting Yogi on the Transfăgărăşan” was posted on social media. „When the child is in the mood for playing, its mother puts her hand in her head! This phase reminded me of my childhood,” the post said.
Tourists remarked that the mother bear, which normally aggressively protects her young around humans, seemed unpeturbed by the youngster’s antics.
Another tourist in the area captured images of two bears running towards him, bizbrasov.ro reported.
Two bears ran out of the tunnel, and a driver panicked and began to reverse. The bear approached the vehicle but didn’t attack.
Romania has an estimated 6,000 brown bears, the most in any European Union country although the figures are disputed. Environmental groups say there are only 2,000, while hunting associations says the figure is closer to 10,000.
Romanian Parliament bill allows killing of bears in the wild
