CENTREVILLE, Md., April 25 (UPI) -- A young black bear who made his way from New Jersey to the Maryland shore has been trapped and relocated near Pennsylvania, wildlife officials said.
The bear became a local celebrity eight months ago when he appeared on Maryland's Eastern Shore, where a black bear had not been seen since Colonial times, said Paul Peditto, a state wildlife official.
Authorities had left him alone, figuring he would make his way back north, The Washington Post reported Saturday.
This week, however, the bear surfaced in the same area and crawled into a trap filled with birdseed set by wildlife officials, who discovered the bear previously had been caught and tattooed by wildlife officials in New Jersey, where he had appeared in downtown Trenton.
The 250-pound male bear, believed to be between 2 and 3 years old, was tranquilized Friday, tagged and taken to a new home in Washington County, Md., near the Pennsylvania border.
"He's in a place that's a good bear habitat, with high-quality bear food and where other bears may enjoy his company," Peditto said.
