Bear goes hunting in Boardman
By Denise Dick
By DENISE DICK
Boardman Police Sgt. Mike Hughes watches for a black bear to emerge from woods between Mathews Road and South Avenue on Wednesday. Police and officers from the Ohio Division of Wildlife were armed with rubber ammunition to startle rather than hurt the animal.
Residents in the 1100 block of Mathews Road in Boardman spotted this young black bear behind their homes.
Poland Village Police Sgt. Jim Craven snaps a picture of the black bear that roamed behind homes on Mathews Road.
BOARDMAN
A bear that’s frightened Mahoning County residents this week remained at large Wednesday night.
The roughly 1-year-old black bear stretches about 3 feet high while on all fours and tips the scales at about 150 pounds.
He’s neither armed nor dangerous, although wildlife officials say that like any animal, he could become aggressive if cornered.
Calls started coming in early Wednesday to township police from residents who had spotted the furry fugitive.
Township police, armed with rubber ammunition to startle rather than hurt the bear, descended on the area of Mathews Road and South Avenue where they saw the animal darting in and out of woods and lumbering through backyards.
“I saw all of the police and asked, ‘Who you looking for now?’” said Louis Figueroa, who lives on Mathews.
Then he saw the bear.
“He was back behind my house,” Figueroa said.
Residents along Mathews emerged from their homes to watch the bear hunt, and people gathered at the plaza at the South Avenue intersection to watch the action.
Wildlife officers from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources’ Division of Wildlife arrived, trying to ensure the bear didn’t move onto Interstate 680, South or Mathews.
Sometimes, the division uses noisemakers to startle the animal and get it to move to a more rural area, said Tom Frank, wildlife officer.
They were hesitant to do that Wednesday morning though, because it was a busy residential and commercial area.
“If he beds down in there, I guarantee he’ll be gone by morning,” said Dave Brown, Mahoning County game warden.
The bear came out of the woods, exploring furniture standing among a woodpile in a backyard on Mathews.
He tipped over an old couch, leaned over the back of it for a moment as if plotting his next move and then removed one of its cushions, tossing it into the woods.
Police said they hoped wildlife officers would tranquilize the bear and move him elsewhere considering the residential neighborhood and traffic volume.
But Jamey Graham, division spokesman, said that’s a last resort, used only if the bear is aggressive, it becomes too comfortable around people or attempts to move it along fail.
“We need to give the bear his space,” Graham said.
He’s more afraid of people than people are of it, she said.
“A bear is an oversized raccoon,” Graham said. “They’re terrified of many things. If you clap your hands, it terrifies them. A barking dog terrifies them.”
Frank said tranquilizing also presents danger because it takes a few minutes for the drug to take effect. During that time, the animal is likely running, trying to get away.
While the early morning visitor was a new way to wake up for township residents, Graham said bear sightings aren’t that unusual during spring and summer.
That’s when bears boot out their older cubs to make it on their own as the older bears prepare to mate.
“With the bear population in Ohio growing, people are going to be seeing more,” she said.
Bear sightings aren’t as uncommon in Pennsylvania. “We have a thriving healthy bear population,” said Jerry Feafer, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Game Commission. In 1975 “we had maybe 4,000 to 4,500 in 20, 25 counties, and today we have upwards of 20,000 bears in 52 of our 67 counties. The bear population has spread out and increased in the past 25 to 30 years.”
Still, it upsets some Keystone State residents.
“Those urban residents are not as accustomed to seeing the wildlife,” Feafer said.
“Now they are living in nature, and nature shows up, so you have two different reactions. Those who lived there for generations say it’s time to take in the bird feeder. Someone who has recently moved sees a black bear and panics.”
Contributor: Vindicator Staff Writer Ashley Luthern.