Trap set to catch 550-pound bear living under house Altadena, CaliforniaAccording to local media reports, the wrong animal was accidentally caught. Los Angeles Times.

The blunder marked another failed attempt by the male black bear to den in the area for at least a month.

According to surveillance video, the large bear has been in and out of a small crawl space under homeowner Ken Johnson’s house since late November.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) set up the bear trap on December 9 after weeks of unsuccessful attempts to drive the bears away using bait and noisemakers, the Los Angeles Times reported.

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Surveillance video captured a giant bear squeezing into its new home. (Johnson via Storyful)

About a week later, Johnson reportedly heard a rattling sound from a metal cage in the home but later realized the wrong bear had been captured.

“CDFW biologists have set traps with bait, installed cameras and lights for remote monitoring and have made repeated efforts to remove the bear from this location,” the agency told Fox News Digital on Tuesday.

“CDFW also recommends that securing crawl spaces is a critical step to help ensure safety when bears repeatedly leave your home. Bear It added: “CDFW has and will continue to work with homeowners to provide advice on hazing methods and the urgent need to close crawl spaces, monitor cameras, and provide support to help ensure bears leave crawl spaces and find more suitable habitat.”

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A large male black bear has been living in a home in Altadena, California, for about a month after weeks of failed removal attempts. (Johnson via Storyful)

The department told the Los Angeles Times that the captured bears were later tagged and released into suitable nearby habitat.

The outlet added that Johnson reportedly took a number of measures to scare away the bear, including temporarily sounding a loud alarm and playing dog barking sounds through speakers pointed toward vents for several hours.

However, none of these worked.

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Multiple attempts to flush out a 550-pound male black bear in Altadena, California, ended in failure. (Johnson via Storyful)

Bear sightings are common in Altadena, located in the Altadena foothills. San Gabriel Mountains.

Johnson and his neighbors often spot bears, especially on trash day, and recently, a second bear even got into the crawl space before being scared away by the original squatters, local media reported.

CDFW added that despite the failed attempt, the agency remains committed to removing bears from residential areas.

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“The California Department of Fish and Wildlife is committed to Help Californians The agency told Fox News Digital that people across the state are having unwelcome encounters with wildlife, which can be stressful and pose complex challenges to peaceful coexistence.

“Despite very limited staffing, CDFW biologists have been in constant communication with the homeowner since reports of the bear entering their unsafe crawl space in November. We remain committed to assisting the homeowner and have never indicated otherwise.”