North Jersey bear finds its way to Delmarva
WYE MILLS, Md. (April 24, 2009) – The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has successfully captured and relocated the black bear that has been roaming the Eastern Shore for the past seven months. The bear was captured on the evening of April 22 in the Centreville area of Queen Anne’s county, and held overnight pending an evaluation of a tag affixed to its ear.
Surprisingly, the bear was originally captured in Mercer County, New Jersey, on June 9, 2008, approximately 110 miles from Wednesday’s capture location. New Jersey biologists tagged the bear and marked him with a lip tattoo prior to relocating the bear to a nearby wildlife management area. The New Jersey data provided DNR staff excellent information on the history of the bear and confirmation of its previous release location.
Prior to its release Thursday morning, the bear was evaluated by DNR wildlife officials and determined to be a young male in good health. He was fitted with Maryland bear tags and microchips and was released on public land in Washington County.
“Based on the history of this bear in New Jersey and its recent time on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, we followed our established protocols for bear management and relocated this animal into occupied bear range,” said Paul Peditto, Director of DNR’s Wildlife and Heritage Service.
"This was the first bear to wander the mid-shore in modern history,” added John Moulis, Eastern Region Manager for the Wildlife and Heritage Service. “We are thankful that most Eastern Shore residents were very tolerant of this visitor and expressed concern for the bear’s safety. We were also appreciative of the support and professionalism from various law enforcement and animal control agencies that helped monitor this animal during his visit.”
Despite unverified reports to the contrary, DNR is confident that this was the only bear roaming the Eastern Shore, but will continue to follow up reports of additional sightings. Citizens may learn more about this and other bears in Maryland at http://www.dnr.maryland.gov/wildlife/bbmd.asp.
Source: Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR)