Black bears are becoming more commonplace as their populations grow, and there's a few things conservation officials want you to know.
Furbearer and Black Bear Biologist Nate Bowersock along with Science Branch Section Chief Laura Conlee shared their insights into being bear aware during a Missouri Department of Conservation webcast earlier this month. (The full webcast can be found here.)
Conlee previously told the News-Leader that folks need to start thinking of Missouri as "bear country." That state remains true Missouri's bear population is part of a larger population with more than 5,000 in the Ozarks and the Ouachita Mountains in Arkansas and 2,000-plus statewide in Oklahoma.