Trail cam captures extreme closeup of bear in California. ‘He’s got some nice teeth’

A black bear doesn’t earn the name ”Big Boy” by skipping meals or being a picky eater — even if that meal is a trail camera.

It may not have any nutritional value, but Big Boy can’t know that until he’s tried it, which he recently did, a California video shows.

The video, recorded by an unlucky trail cam mounted near a cabin in the Sierras, captures a rarely seen prey’s-eye view of a black bear: fangs and molars, throat and jaws.

Hal Hunter, who set up 10 or so cameras in the area, shared clips of the Feb. 2 nocturnal encounter on Facebook.

“This night [Big Boy] was not happy about the motion sensing light coming on and attacked the camera. I think he would have ate it if he had got it off the mount,” Hunter said of the locally known beast.

“If you have never seen inside a bear’s mouth, this is your chance.”

It’s the view honeybees, fish and unsecured garbage have nightmares about. That hunters and hikers hope not to see. And also a reminder that while black bears are often rotund and fluffy — and less aggressive than brown bears — they are still powerful predators.

“That scared me just watching it,” one person commented on Hunter’s post.

“Not a sight you would normally be privy to … and [be] able to walk away,” wrote another.

Others were impressed with Big Boy’s dental health.

“He’s got some nice teeth and what a [feisty] bugger,” a commenter said.

Another noted they “didn’t see any tartar.”

Big Boy may have a perfect smile but he’s no gentleman.

“He is a big brute. Raids the garbage cans in the area here. Eats well as you can see,” Hunter said.

But a full belly has not given the camera-chewing “brute” a sunny disposition.

“Seems to be a bit more grouchy these days,” Hunter said.

This story was originally published February 15, 2022 at 12:31 PM with the headline "Trail cam captures extreme closeup of bear in California. ‘He’s got some nice teeth’."