— Maggie Gordon

KNOX — The warm weather is here, and just like clockwork, the bears are back in town.

There has been evidence of bears on Lark Street in the village of Altamont, where a bear left tracks on Alice Jacklet’s front porch. It has also been spotted on Helderberg Road, Whipple Road, and Berne-Altamont Road in Knox.

While there have been sightings in several places, this does not necessarily mean that there is more than one bear. Black bears typically have home ranges which cover hundreds of square miles, according to the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC).
Jim Catalfamo, a resident of Helderberg Road in Knox, saw a bear last summer, digging through a neighbors garbage cans. "It was looking for something yummy," Catalfamo said.
He said it was a large, black bear, and "it had to be at least a minimum of four feet, maybe five feet tall, on all fours."

Frank Horn, of Whipple Road in Knox, found wet footprints on his garage floor when he was leaving for work at 5:50 a.m. a few weeks ago.
"My garbage was just thrown all over the place. It was a mess," Horn said. While he did not see the bear himself, he said that it was dark outside and he did see a flash run down the road.
Lori Leonard who lives across the road from Horn, heard about the four-legged visitors across the way. "I was a little afraid because we were having a camp-out at my house after the prom. So I told the kids to have a big bonfire," she said.
These bears are usually very shy creatures and are reluctant to visit residential areas. However they can become a "nuisance" and cause a significant amount of damage if they think they can get food easily, according to the DEC’s website.
"I never felt threatened. I was kind of amazed in awe because I didn’t hear of any bear sightings before. I was more curious — watching the creature. It was beautiful," Catalfamo said. "He was just interested in the garbage can."
"To prevent encounters between bears and humans, people should never intentionally feed bears and should take every precaution to discourage bears from seeking out food sources in neighborhoods and other residential areas," the DEC Regional Director, Steve Schassler said in a press release this April.
The website says that feeding bears is illegal, and "it is in the best interest of both bears and people if bears get their food solely from wild sources." A black bear’s diet usually consists of grubs, dead animals, ants and plants.

The website also instructs residents to call the DEC if they suspect that bears are being fed.

The DEC suggests a few ways to keep bears away. It recommends that residents stop feeding birds after the snow melts in early spring, and bring the feeders inside. The DEC website states that residents should dispose of garbage frequently and wipe out garbage cans with ammonia. It also suggests that garbage cans are not left outside for pick-up until the last moment possible.

Barbecue grills should be cleaned regularly and stored inside when possible. Pets should be fed indoors and their food should be stored inside as well. The DEC discourages placing melon rinds, meat and bones in compost piles, and burning garbage.
"Black bears will take advantage of almost any readily available food source, including garbage," Schassler said.
Rick Georgeson, a spokesperson for the DEC, and hilltown resident is not immune to bear visitors. "We had one back in March," he said. "We had a little bit of food left in the bird feeder. He came through and kind of bent it."
Georgeson said he did not see the animal, but knew it was a bear. "You can just tell because the bird feeder was about six-feet up There was just a little bit of residue left and he just licked it clean," he said.

For more information about bears in the Capital Region, contact the DEC Region 4 Wildlife office at (607) 652-7367, or go to the DEC website at www.dec.state.ny.us