RICHMOND HEIGHTS, Mo. (KMOX) — A bear was shot with multiple tranquilizer darts and lowered itself out of a tree in the middle of a St. Louis County neighborhood after a two-hour standoff Sunday night. The bear will be taken out into the country after being photographed across multiple suburbs in St. Louis.
The 150-pound, male black bear tumbled down the trunk and collapsed into some bushes, after being shot with two tranquilizer darts by Tom Meister of the Missouri Department of Conservation. He believes the bear – estimated to be between 18-months and 2-years-old – was looking for love.
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It was finally captured in a Richmond Heights neighborhood, after bear sightings had been reported throughout the weekend in several St. Louis-area communities, including Webster Groves, Kirkwood, Glendale, Fenton, Sunset Hills and Brentwood. There no injuries reported.
The bear was hauled away in a trailer cage to be let go in rural Missouri. Conservation officials tagged his ears so he can be identified if spotted again.
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The black bear population in Missouri is estimated at 800 to 850 – and growing.
Bears are most active in the southern part of the state and around this time of year are often sighted in more residential areas. Experts say they are out looking for food, land or love, and to stay about 100 yards back if you see one. You can report sightings here, at nature.mdc.mo.gov.
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