Bayou Vista bear caught, moved to safety

A Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries biologist tranquilized a bear spotted in Bayou Vista last week on Middle Road. This was the same bear discovered early last week in a tree on Clarke Road.
“Plan A is always to wait for the bear to come down on the first night,” said Maria Davidson, large carnivore program manager for Wildlife & Fisheries. “The bear didn’t come down.
“The bear obviously stayed in the neighborhood and went up another tree.”
Davidson confirmed the bear was an adult female, not a young male as initially believed.
The bear was released into the Bayou Teche National Wildlife Refuge.
Sean Murphy, Wildlife & Fisheries biologist, decided to dart the bear for a couple of reasons.
The bear appeared again within a few days of the first sighting on Clarke Road.
It took two days for her to leave. She also managed to escape the trap set on Clarke Road.
After it was apparent that the bear did not go into the trap, Murphy decided darting her was best decision.
The bear was not harmed.
“We have to consider the totality of circumstances in order to come up with a solution for each unique situation,” said Davidson. “There are a lot of factors to consider, not just a bear is up a tree, and we want it to come down.
“We want to make sure that it’s the most effective, efficient, safe way to go about resolving the situation. It varies with each one.”
St. Mary Parish Black Bear Officer Catherine Siracusa received a call Thursday from a St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office dispatcher with a location of the new bear sighting.
The bear was on the 200 block of Middle Street in Bayou Vista.
The bear was in a tree on the south side of the drainage canal, which was behind some houses on Delmar Street, Siracusa said.
The bear was in a tree behind a house. But it was outside the fenced area.
“So the bear was in a safer position this time then what the bear was on Clarke Road,” Siracusa said.
“It was easier to separate the people from the area where the bear was located. The residents on Delmar Street were very cooperative, staying inside, not making any noise.”
Siracusa believes that after the bear’s unpleasant experience, she will not return to the Middle Road location.
One problem with tranquilizing animals is that they may run after being darted, Siracusa said.
“The main concern was people were around,” Siracusa said. “Nobody wanted the general public to get hurt.
“It occurred just when the children were getting out from school, so it could’ve been a very chaotic situation. But with the sheriff’s department reacting the way they did and getting it taken care of, it avoided a lot of chaos and foolishness.”
For the most part, residents were cooperative but a few “didn’t want to cooperate saying, “You’re here, why can’t I be here?,” Siracusa said.
“It’s those things that cause more problems.”
The bear was spotted Wednesday evening around Wal-Mart. Thursday afternoon around 3 p.m. the call came through about the bear’s location on Middle Road.
The sheriff’s department worked quickly to keep residents away by blocking off the area where the bear was located.
“Without the cooperation of the sheriff’s department and Bayou Vista Fire Department, I don’t think it would have gone off as easily,” Siracusa said.
“I think we would’ve ended up another situation like on Clarke Road, where it took two nights to get the animal down and out of the way.”