A brown bear cub is believed to have become intoxicated after indulging in a significant amount of "mad honey".
Rescued in northwestern Turkey’s Duzce province on Thursday (August 11), the female bear appeared to be wobbling and whining in footage taken as people had rescued her from the forest.
The mad honey that the bear had consumed, or “deli bal” in Turkish, is produced in small quantities by beekeepers in the Kaçkar mountains above the Black Sea.
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Indigenous species of rhododendrons produce a potent neurotoxin called grayanotoxin and if bees consume on a certain amount of the rhododendron nectar, the mud-red honey that is produced possesses a strong scent and bitter taste, that could include a potential high for animals that consume it.
A euphoric state can be reached with a consumption of a small spoonful eaten on its own or taken with hot water or boiled milk.
Despite that, there are also disadvantages as increased consumption of the mad honey could result in nausea, fainting, seizures, arrhythmia and, in some cases, death, as dozens of people a year have been admitted to hospital in Turkey for mad honey poisoning.
In the case for the bear, she escaped any serious harm despite passing out after her consumption as she was taken to a vet and treated.
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Officials confirmed the bear was in good condition and would hopefully be released back into her home in the wild in the coming days.
The news found a home on social media where the government took advantage as Turkey’s agriculture ministry went on Twitter to ask Turkish citizens to come up with a name for the bear.
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