Black bears seen taking ride on lake in Bedfordshire park

A group of four black bears was seen having a great time at Woburn Safari Park when rain made a small lake in their preservation enclosure, according to the photos released by the Bedfordshire-based park.

After seeing the lake, the black bears — wandering — decided to take a joyride on a floating swan pedalo.

The Sky News reported citing Tommy Babington, deputy head of the carnivore section at the park in Bedfordshire, saying that the bears were immediately "intrigued by their new neighbour and wasted no time in investigating it".

Babington noted: "The pedalo is usually used elsewhere on the site but was awaiting new pedals."

"It was great fun for visitors to seeing them climb on board, and we love devising new ways to provide food, scent and habitat enrichment that stimulates their natural foraging behaviours," he said.

"Bears are naturally very curious animals, and keepers will encourage this with all kinds of enrichment through their habitat as this keeps their minds and bodies active,” he stated, adding that "the swan boat enrichment may be a less conventional approach to stimulating their natural behaviours, but it certainly was a hit."

The four black bears are from North America. They can grow up to 2m long and they can weigh over 250kgs.