By Jon Johnson
MORENCI – The Arizona Game and Fish Department, with assistance from the Clifton Police Department and Greenlee County Sheriff’s Office, successfully captured a rogue juvenile black bear Tuesday night and released it into the southern Arizona mountains.
According to Mark Frieberg, Public Affairs Community Liaison for the Arizona Game and Fish Department, the 2-year-old juvenile was wandering around the Clifton/Morenci area, looking for food and water, and had been getting into residential trash. Any bear less than four years old is considered a juvenile by the department.
A trap was set for the bear, but it was spied in a tree in a residential backyard in Morenci, and an AZGFD officer tranquilized it. The bear was then carried to an awaiting Game and Fish truck with the assistance of law enforcement.
Be Bear Aware
The AZGFD advises being Bear Aware this time of year, as bears are struggling to find enough food and water and are resorting to scavenging in residential areas.
The AZGFD advises residents in Clifton and Morenci not to leave any food out where a bear could find it.
“It’s pretty important for people to bring in dog food or cat food or their quail blocks because this time of year bears are having a hard time finding enough food out in the wild, so they’re resorting to moving into town to find any kind of food they can,” Frieberg said. “And we’re just asking the public not to leave any types of food out.”
