It was a wild Thursday evening in San Anselmo after a black bear was spotted in a tree and a block away from downtown. Cheryl Hurd reports.
A bear that was perched in a tree in the backyard of a home on San Anselmo's Tamalpais Avenue has come down on its own and has left the neighborhood for the open space area near Mount Tamalpais, according to police.
A spokesperson for the Central Marin Police Authority said the bear came down from the tree in the 100 block of Tamalpais Avenue at 7:46 p.m. Thursday.
The bear was encouraged by first responders to leave the neighborhood and walk into the wilderness.
A resident walked and showed NBC Bay Area’s Cheryl Hurd through her backyard Thursday including where the bear left the neighborhood.
Residents took some pictures taken right before his escape show a young and frightened a California black bear.
The entire neighborhood came out to look at the animal clinging to a tree limb. People were with their cell phones snapping and sharing pictures.
“I heard a helicopter for about an hour and a half. I thought it was a manhunt. When I heard it was a bear, I was actually relieved," said San Anselmo resident Natalie Harvey. “He was beautiful. He was kind of positioned I could see the back of him then he moved you could see his head, pretty large.”
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Out of an abundance of caution, police are asking residents to please secure outdoor trash or pet food indoors or inside enclosed garages for the next 24 to 48 hours.
Anyone who sees the bear again should stay at least 100 yards away from it, and call 911.
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Police explained that the bear population is growing. and sightings are becoming common in the North Bay area, particularly in Sonoma County.
Sightings in Marin County are unusual, police added.
There have only been two or three bear sightings in Marin County since 2003. Spring is the time of year when juvenile male bears leave their mothers to establish their own territories.
