A video of a man apparently exploring a bear’s den has gone viral for what happened after the hulking bruin returned home.
But does the video show a real-life situation or a carefully choreographed production?
The first clip was posted on Sept. 13 to the page of Instagram influencer Stefan Jankovic. In the video, Jankovic recorded himself in the underground den before turning the camera back to the entrance and showing a massive brown bear blocking the way.
Jankovic made his way forward slowly, and was eventually able to squeeze past the bear as the massive beast inspected his scent.
Along with the video, Jankovic added, “On the edge of life” to the post, written in the Serbian language.
Trending:
The video, which has already been watched by millions of people, can be seen here. The video has also been reposted by media outlets and Jankovic’s fellow influencers.
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A video posted to Jankovic’s account on the next day, Sept. 14, showed the influencer in another unenviable situation.
In the second clip, the influencer was recording from a position high in a tree as two bears milled around below him. As the video neared the end, one began climbing up Jankovic’s tree.
Have you ever seen a bear in the wild?
Yes: 67% (161 Votes)
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Details provided by the account are scarce, but it appeared this was a controlled interaction with the animals.
One clue hinting these videos may not show spontaneous encounters in the wild is a man seen in the background at the very end of the first video. He only appears for a brief moment, but he’s not acting in a way somebody might if their friend was cornered by a bear.
A structure that appears similar to a fence can be seen behind the man.
Another potential clue is the animals’ paths worn into the ground in the second video.
While game trails exist in the wild, the packed-earth walkways are more akin to what can be seen in zoo animals’ limited enclosures.
The third, and perhaps the most telling clue, is a third video posted by Jankovic with the caption, “We became best friends.”
In the Sept. 15 post, the influencer could be seen playing with bears inside an enclosure. They appeared to be the same animals as in his previous videos. He petted them and even fed one a piece of food out of his own mouth, hinting that these bears were trained animals or otherwise used to humans.
Comments on the video, which can be seen here, warned Jankovic about the dangers of bears, even those beasts that are familiar with humans.
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