Young Black Bear Travels from Maryland To Virginia
A young black bear that became a minor celebrity after roaming through parts of Maryland has now made its way to Northern Virginia, where it was spotted earlier this week in the town of Herndon.
The bear, believed to be about 18 months old, was first seen around 8 a.m. Monday morning, prompting local authorities to keep tabs on him throughout the day. Eventually, the bear climbed a tree along Elden Street and stayed perched for nearly four hours, drawing a curious crowd of onlookers. Officials later tranquilized and safely relocated him to the Shenandoah Valley.
Nicknamed “Elden” by local officials, the bear has had quite the journey. His travels began in mid-May when he was first spotted in the Randallstown and Pikesville areas of Baltimore County. He then moved through Howard County, showing up in Ellicott City and even at a shopping center in Columbia. Wildlife officials with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) eventually tranquilized and relocated him on May 26 from Prince George’s County to a more remote area west of Silver Spring.
As part of a University of Maryland research project, the bear was fitted with a GPS collar to study how young bears disperse and migrate across the state. According to Jonathan Trudeau, a game mammal section leader at the DNR, the bear followed highways south into Virginia after his relocation.
Bear sightings outside of Western Maryland have become more common in recent years. Trudeau attributes the trend to a growing black bear population and the natural behavior of young male bears to roam in search of new territory. “Bears used to occupy all of Maryland,” he explained. “Now they’re starting to recolonize areas they historically lived in, although the landscape is very different due to human development.”
There are an estimated 2,000 black bears in Maryland. While they generally avoid humans, DNR officials advise residents to keep a safe distance if they spot one.
