Two rescue bears who escaped from a British wildlife park helped themselves to a week’s worth of honey while on the run.

Police were called after two resident bears got out of their enclosure at Wildwood Devon, at Escot Park near Ottery St Mary.

Mish and Lucy, who were found after being abandoned by their mother in Albania three years earlier, were moved to the site in 2022 and would have been unable to survive in the wild.

But they fled their enclosure, provoking a major police hunt, and tucked into a large haul of honey at the park’s shop.

Visitors were taken to a place of safety as specialists officers attended the scene. The bears were returned safely to their home a short while later.

A spokesman for Devon and Cornwall Police said: “We were made aware of two resident bears having escaped from their home at Escot Park on the afternoon of Monday June 23.

“Specialist officers attended, and visitors were taken to places of safety. The bears were safely returned to their area and secured.”

The incident lasted around an hour and the bears, both five years old, were closely monitored during the process.