Animal captured near Morristown  East, released in Smoky Mountains
By: ROBERT MOORE, Tribune Staff Writer

An errant 160-pound black bear, possibly displeased with his new Kentucky home, roamed through central Morristown Sunday morning before being sedated and moved into happier hunting grounds.                                          

After the treed bear was hit by a tranquilizer dart and fell to the ground near Morristown-Hamblen High School East, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency personnel relocated the bear to Cherokee National Forest near the Tennessee-North Carolina state line.

The bear wore an ear tag, which indicates he once resided in Kentucky, according to Lt. George Jones of the Morristown Police Department.

Allen Ricks, a TWRA spokesman, says he won't know the whole story until he speaks with Kentucky wildlife officials this week, but theorizes the bear could have been relocated from Tennessee some time ago, and it was making a beeline for its former home.

"They have an extremely good homing instinct," Ricks said this morning.

Ricks says what bears don't have is an innate homing system allowing them to avoid areas populated by humans. He says it's not uncommon for transplanted "problem bears" to travel more than 100 miles to return to the forest of their birth.

The wildlife officer says another possible reason the bear could have roamed through Morristown is an adult male bear in Kentucky decided his territory wasn't big enough for the both of them.

Jones says a distressed Turkey Street resident, who lives near Wildwood Park in north Morristown, called 911 shortly before 8 a.m. Sunday and reported he'd seen a bear loping through his back yard.

As the bear traveled south toward central Morristown, additional reports of bear sightings continued - first on Buffalo Trail, then on Carriger Street and East Sixth North Street, according to the police lieutenant.

Jones says police surrounded the wayward bear with their cruisers in an effort to protect those who might be inclined to approach the frightened animal.

The low-speed pursuit continued across East Andrew Johnson Highway and ended when the bear climbed a tree.

"By this time, the bear was getting pretty tired," Jones said.

Ricks says if the animal had been left to his own devices, he likely would have continued through town without
incident.

He says roaming bears frequently travel at night, but Sunday wasn't the first time a bear had been spotted during the daylight hours in Hamblen County.

As unlikely as a second bear spotting this year might be, Ricks advises anyone spotting a bear not to feed it or attempt to get too close of a look.

©Citizen Tribune 2004