Prepare for Bear Sightings

The bear sightings in the central Bucks County area last week likely won't be the last, a wildlife expert said.

But the good news is black bears are rarely dangerous to the public, said Rick Macklem, a Bucks County conservation officer. "It takes a lot to get a bear to attack you," Macklem said. "Unless it’s a mom with cubs. She will do everything she can to protect them."

Based out of Buckingham Township, Macklem covers Bucks County from Plumstead down to Bristol for the Pennsylvania Game Commission.

Numerous bear sightings were reported in the area last week.

A young black .

Easton police recently shot and killed a young bear when a conservation officer was unavailable to come tranquilize it, The Morning Call reported Friday.

It's a conflict that is likely to escalate over the next several weeks as bear mating season begins, Macklem said. He predicted that residents in Central Bucks County will see more in the coming weeks.

"When it comes to bears, it’s going to be Solebury, Plumstead, Buckingahm Doylestown – pretty much anything above Wrightstown," Macklem said. "They all came from the Solebury area."

Most of them will be young bears, under two years old, looking to establish their own territory after their mothers give them the boot, Macklem said.

That's because mama bear is coming into mating season, he said. Suitors would be more likely to kill her offspring than cuddle them.

Sometimes they end up in the wrong place, as two bears did this week.

One wandered through Doylestown's Maplewood neighborhood on Wednesday evening. Doylestown Borough police officers cornered him in a backyard and kept watch over him as he hid in a corner until Macklem and fellow conservation officer John Papson, who is based out of Quakertown, could arrive to tranquilize the bear. He was relocated on Thursday to state game lands in Schuylkill County.

While the bear was tranquilized, Macklem put a tag in his ear and pulled his tooth.

The tooth has been sent to a state lab for analysis. A vet tech will be able to tell how old he is from the rings in his teeth, which form just like rings in trees, Macklem said.

The ear tag identifies the bear in the state game commission's system. If he's ever caught again in Pennsylvania, wildlife officers will be able to learn a lot about bear behavior.

"They're going to get a weight measurement and compare it to see how much weight he’s gained since he was trapped here," Macklam said. "We'll learn about his range based on where he was released and where he was trapped again. We get a lot of information about the bear" from the tagging system.

A second bear was spotted in the Doylestown area on Thursday near Lenape Middle School. It then headed off into Doylestown Township, perhaps making for the Pine Run reservoir.

Newtown Township received four calls Wednesday about black bear sightings. The bears were seen on Atkinson Lane, Second Street Pike, Ridge Avenue and Brownsburg Road near Crest Road, police said.

So what should you do if you see a bear? Here's Macklem's advice:

• Leave it alone, and it will probably leave you alone. Black bears typically are afraid of people and will avoid them whenever possible, Macklem said. Mother bears with cubs are the exception; give them a wide berth.
• Don't follow or harass the bear. (See No. 1.)
• If you end up in close proximity to a bear, clap your hands and shout. The noise will probably scare it away

Macklem also recommends taking down bird feeders, which attract the bears. They also are drawn to trash cans, so keeping cans secured inside until trash pickup day also is a good idea, he said.

Learning more about bears and understanding what drives their behavior will help humans and bears co-exist peacefully, he said.

"They’re just trying to find their way," said Macklem. "They may cross a few backyards, maybe get into a little bit of trouble along the way. But they’re just trying to move through to find a place of their own."

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