Wildlife officers in the southwest Florida killed three black bears after a violent mutilation which led to the death of a man and a dog, the first fatal attack of the genre in the state.
The authorities suspect that Robert Markel, 89, died of a bear attack Near his home early on Monday.
According to the Associated Press, the Bears DNA samples and the attack scene were sent to a Gainesville laboratory for tests to determine if one of the animals killed Markel.
The attack occurred in a rural area east of Naples, just south of Big Cypress Wildlife Management Zone.
The body of the bear who would have killed the man was removed from a wooded area near the attack site on Monday evening, according to the Naples Daily News.
The Rangers were called to the scene around 7:15 am Monday after Markel’s daughter said he saw a bear attacking her father’s spokesman Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), George Reynaud, at a press conference on Monday.
Reynaud said that Markel’s body had been discovered “a few hundred meters” of the dog.
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“We know it was an attack on bear. We don’t know if it was the same bear or several bears,” he said.
Wildlife agents secured the region and set numerous traps and cameras on Monday evening, said officials, adding that the authorities advised public members to avoid the region. A search team of around 10 officers also laid off the area on foot.
“Lethal Force is a last resort, but we are armed to remedy us,” said a second spokesperson, Tyler Matthews, at the press conference.
The Wildlife Commission has recorded 43 bear meetings In Florida since 2006, including Monday, with two previous attacks in Naples, one of which involved a dog.
Markel’s death would be the first of the state to be caused by an attack by bear, if it was confirmed.
The only other bear meeting recorded in Florida in 2025 was in Silver Springs in February and involved an adult woman with her young little one.
According to the FWC, it is rare for the bears to injure people in Florida, although there have been incidents of residents bitten and striped by the bears who defend themselves, their bears or their food sources.
If a person is attacked by a black bear, the FWC encourages the response.
“Go back aggressively,” said the website. “People have managed to push black bear attacks using rocks, sticks or even their bare hands!”
The black bears of Florida, which were once threatened, have been walking more and more in the districts and private properties in recent years, in particular in more rural areas of the North and the center of Florida.
– with files from the Associated Press
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