Florida is home to some of the most diverse wildlife in the country.
One showdown between two of the biggest predators in North America was captured live.
And a video of a bear getting into an epic brawl crossing a Florida river will leave you speechless.
Black bear battles two alligators while crossing a Florida river
A Florida kayaker watched as a black bear fought off two alligators while crossing a river in the Orlando area.
Tyler Futrell recorded the fight in the St. Johns River as the black bear turned back two alligators who were looking for a snack.
The DeBary, Florida resident told Orlando’s News 6 that he was kayaking near the mouth of the Wekiva River where it intersects with the St. Johns River when he noticed something in the water.
At first, he thought it was a wild hog trying to swim across to the other bank.
“I grew up around here, so I’m pretty used to seeing hogs and whatever,” Futrell said. “But a bear is a pretty rare sight, so it didn’t even cross my mind.”
Florida has about 4,000 black bears who live in the wild.
Futrell stayed back in his kayak about 100 feet away from the bear and began filming on his cell phone as it crossed the river.
“I didn’t want whatever this was, for me to just come up and bump into it because that’s going to turn a great morning into a really bad one,” Futrell explained.
Black bear beats back alligator attacks
Futrell recorded an alligator making its way toward the bear with its eye barely peaking above the water’s surface.
“Oh man, alligator comin’ to say hi,” Futrell said in his video.
The black bear gave the alligator a powerful swat with his paw that sent water splashing everywhere and the alligator scurrying away.
And the bear kept on swimming toward its destination on the other side.
“Oh s**t!” Futrell exclaimed after the encounter.
“Go for round two! Go for round two!” Futrell added.
Sure enough, the black bear ran into another alligator.
The annoyed bear begins growling and gives the alligator another powerful swat with his paw before continuing on his way.
Black bear fends off 2 attacks by gators as it crosses the St. John’s River in Central Florida.#FloridaProblems
story ???? https://t.co/NhQewfVopw pic.twitter.com/MVUdLgsCFT
— SFDB (@sfdb) June 5, 2024
The black bear made it to the other side of the river where it disappeared into the trees.
“It was just kind of annoyed and ready to get out of the water,” Futrell explained.
After getting bested by the bear, the alligator smacked its tail on the water.
“Mr. Alligator’s pissed,” Futrell said. “I’ve never seen that before in my life.”
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission reports that black bears are proficient swimmers who can easily cross rivers and have been found swimming in the Gulf of Mexico.
Florida is home to more than 1.3 million alligators but only 4,000 black bears, making the odds of seeing them fight extremely low.
Tyler Futrell got to experience nature’s version of Godzilla vs. King Kong with the rumble he saw on the St. Johns River.
DeSantis Daily will keep you up-to-date on any new developments in this ongoing story.
