PENNSYLVANIA (WHTM) – A Pennsylvania State Game Warden handled not one, not two, but seven bears in less than a week.
A game warden who serves in the southwest region of the state received a call about a nuisance bear in a trap and found an untagged female black bear. The bear was relocated about 20 miles away on State Game Land 42 after it was determined there was no evidence of cubs being around.
Two hours later, the game warden got a call about a basketball-sized cub laying on the ground where the trap had been. He responded to the scene to find two cubs up two different trees. After darting and processing both cubs, he placed them together in a culvert trap.
Unsure of whether there was another female bear in the area, he set an additional trap next to the one with the cubs. The next day, the second trap was empty.
The trap with the two cubs were relocated to State Game Land 42 near where the female bear was relocated. The warden set up a second trap next to the trap with the cubs in hope of reuniting them with the mother.
Two days later the warden returned and found a different female bear in the second trap. The bear turned out to be a previously tagged bear that was determined to be a missing collared female that couldn’t be found during the 2022 den season.
While handling the newly discovered bear the warden looked up and saw three cubs in the tree above him.
The warden decided to immobilize the female bear in the trap and transferred the orphaned cubs into the trap with her. The warden hoped the two cubs could roll up next to her and nurse before she woke up.
After leaving the bears for the day the warden returned to find all of the bears had left with no evidence of distress. The warden believes the reintroduction went well, but did not have video of the bears leaving the traps together.