The black bear that roamed Berrien, LaPorte and St. Joseph counties last summer has been captured and euthanizedafter becoming aggressive, but conservation officers won't be surprised if more bears show up here in the future.
When the bear was first spotted in Indiana last June it marked the first confirmed wild black bear sighting in the state in 144 years. Hunting and habitat loss eradicated the species in the 1800s.
Over the past 20 years, the imaginary line in Michigan where bears rarely crossed has moved about 120 miles to the south with sightings not uncommon now near Lansing, Grand Rapids and even farther to the south and east toward Ann Arbor, according to Mark Sargent, a spokesman for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.
Previously, it was rare to ever see a bear south of Big Rapids, Mich., which is about 60 miles north of Grand Rapids and where Sargent in 1996 became the first conservation officer to a trap a bear that had been getting into beehives and barns.
It's believed the bear that was euthanized near Stevensville on April 9 came down from the Muskegon area, which is about 50 miles south and west from Big Rapids.
Sargent said the gradual migration south is from an increase in forested areas once farms get sold and subdivided for residential use.
Like many others his age, this bear was more than likely pushed away by the mother acting on instinct to do so a year after birth, Sargent said. Sometimes, though, cubs away from their mother for the first time venture out for unusually long distances.
Many times, strays return to their native area but this one didn't, perhaps, because of having plenty of food and cover.