HOWARD COUNTY, Md. (WBFF) — A black bear spent Sunday night lounging on Marcia Hill’s Ellicott City deck as if it owned the place — knocking over her trash can, ignoring the spotlights, and staring back at her through the glass. “He could have had a cup of coffee there with him and put his feet up,” Hill said.
Traditionally, Maryland’s four westernmost counties are black bear breeding grounds, but the cuddly-looking predators are making their way to the Howard County suburbs. In recent years more bears have been seen in areas they historically haven’t been, including southern Baltimore County and Howard County, said Jonathan Trudeau, game mammal section leader with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.
There’s been an adult male black bear frequenting the Patapsco Valley State Park area in Ellicott City and Catonsville in the last month, Trudeau said. DNR was able to trap the adult male bear and tag his ears, he said. It is unclear whether the bear seen by Hill was the same bear.
Bears are territorial, and once an area is occupied, they’ll leave to find a new area to live. Patapsco Valley State Park is a great habitat, Trudeau said. Black bears once occupied the state, and they’re starting to recolonize areas, he said. DNR is working with the University of Maryland Extension to better understand the expansion of black bears.
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