Black Bear Spotted in Union County

According to TAP Into Basking Ridge, a black Bear has been spotted in the following Somerset County and Union County townships:

Monday

• Warren - Northridge Drive, off of Emerson Lane (East side of town)
  

• Berkeley Heights - near the New Providence boarder (less than a half-mile from the Lucent Technologies campus).

Tuesday

• Berkeley Heights - the intersection of Mountain Avenue and Plainfield Avenue.

“Black bears by nature tend to be wary of people,” according to The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.

However, if you do see a black bear, the NJDEP offers the following tips to stay safe:

• Never feed or approach a bear.
• Remain calm.
• Make the bear aware of your presence by speaking in an assertive voice, singing, clapping your hands, or making other noises.
• Make sure the bear has an escape route.
• If a bear enters your home, provide it with an escape route by propping all doors open.
• Avoid direct eye contact, which may be perceived by a bear as a challenge. Never run from a bear. Instead, slowly back away.
• To scare the bear away, make loud noises by yelling, banging pots and pans or using an airhorn. Make yourself look as big as possible by waving your arms. If you are with someone else, stand close together with your arms raised above your head.
• The bear may utter a series of huffs, make popping jaw sounds by snapping its jaws and swat the ground. These are warning signs that you are too close. Slowly back away, avoid direct eye contact and do not run.
• If a bear stands on its hind legs or moves closer, it may be trying to get a better view or detect scents in the air. It is usually not a threatening
  behavior.
• Black bears will sometimes “bluff charge” when cornered, threatened or attempting to steal food. Stand your ground, avoid direct eye contact, then slowly back away. Do not run.
• If the bear does not leave, move to a secure area.
• Families who live in areas with high black bear populations should have a “Bear Plan” in place for children, with whistles, air horns and
  an escape route.
• Black bear attacks are extremely rare. If a black bear does
  attack, fight back.