Bear Sightings Normal for State

While the Hillsborough Police have sent two alerts regarding bear sightings since May, the sightings are not out of the ordinary for New Jersey.

“All 21 counties have had bear sightings so sighting a bear in New Jersey is not uncommon,” Larry Ragonese, spokesman for the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), said. “Hillsborough is not what is considered “bear country”. It’s not in the center of the most populated portion, Sussex, Warren, parts of Morris, Hunterdon, northern Passaic, the edge of Bergen.”

Regardless of location, bear sightings are normal for the state—even outside the north western parts of the state that the animals frequent.

“But bears occasionally will be sighted,” Ragonese said. “They’re part of the nature in New Jersey these days.”

Still, explaining the bear sightings in Hillsborough is a complicated question. While the town is not in New Jersey’s bear country, it’s also normal to see ones in towns outside the northwestern part of the state.

“It’s a tough question to answer,” Ragonese added. “Normally, people wouldn’t be seeing bears in Hillsborough but you can occasionally sight one.”

Though Hillsborough has had two bear sightings this year, the animals do not appear to be migrating south, according to data gathered during a bear hunt held last year Ragonese continued.

While bears sightings are not a regular occurrence, residents should not consider bears a problem as long as the bear is behaving normally, according to the DEP’s wildlife experts.
According to the DEP, those who encounter bears should remain calm, avoid direct eye contact, back up slowly and speak in a low assertive voice.

Residents can report bear damage, nuisance behavior, or aggressive bears to the Wildlife Control Unit of the DEO’s Division of Fish and Wildlife at 908-735-8793. During evenings or weekends, residents should call their local police departments or the DEP hotline at 877-WARN-DEP.