Not everyone can wake up looking a million dollars after a power nap, and the same can be said for B.C.乌鸦传媒檚 black bears emerging from their winter hibernation.

One bear in particular was caught looking all the worse for wear in Port Renfrew by Jennifer Heinrichs, who was stopped in her tracks on April 12 when she spotted the animal devoid of fur around the eyes and snout.

乌鸦传媒淚 didn't really pay attention to the missing fur on the face, initially I was just enamoured with the animal and watching what it was doing and getting decent shots of it,乌鸦传媒� said Heinrichs, who took the photos from a safe distance, inside her car.

乌鸦传媒淚t did look strange, it looked like it was wearing a mask like the Phantom of the Opera. Otherwise, he was really healthy 乌鸦传媒� it乌鸦传媒檚 fat, and it's clearly had a good winter.乌鸦传媒�

Wanting to get to the bottom of what was causing the bear乌鸦传媒檚 hair loss, Heinrichs shared her snap in the Field Naturalists of Vancouver Island Facebook group.

Here she was met with a wave of theories, including mange, a burn injury and frostbite, through to allegations of Heinrichs faking the image using AI technology.

The allegations were quickly dismissed by the group乌鸦传媒檚 moderator Laura Briggs, who ensures all posts are checked and approved before publishing. 乌鸦传媒淎 more conscientious moderator doesn't exist,乌鸦传媒� said Heinrichs. 乌鸦传媒淪he spends hours a day on it.乌鸦传媒�

Heinrichs also reached out to wildlife experts for help, including Northern Lights Wildlife Society in Smithers, who suggested the bare-faced bear could be suffering from 乌鸦传媒渃lassic demodex ursi,乌鸦传媒� a skin mite unique to black bears.

Residing in the hair follicles of black bears, the mites can cause a condition called demodicosis, which can lead to hair loss and other skin irritations.

乌鸦传媒淣ot contagious, hair will grow back,乌鸦传媒� said a representative from Northern Lights Wildlife Society in an email to Heinrichs.

Founder of Vancouver Island乌鸦传媒檚 North Island Wildlife Recovery Association Robin Campbell also feels there is no cause for concern.

乌鸦传媒淚 wouldn乌鸦传媒檛 worry about that bear, there's a lot of things that can be going on, but it could be just part of the spring coat blowout, which our bears get sometimes 乌鸦传媒� they grow in beautifully,乌鸦传媒� he told Sooke News Mirror in an email. 乌鸦传媒淚t could be a mite, but bears are very strong and will do fine.乌鸦传媒�