Two bear cubs rescued in downtown Colorado Springs
Two bear cubs rescued from central Colorado Springs Sunday and Monday have been transferred to a rehabilitation center in southern Colorado, Colorado Parks and Wildlife spokesman Bill Vogrin said.
About 1:30 p.m. Monday, wildlife officers rescued a bear cub from a tree in Acacia Park downtown.
“A few officers looked around the area for the sow, but we never saw it,” Vogrin said.
Wildlife officers responded early Sunday to reports of another bear being in an area just east of Interstate 25, near Fillmore Street. By about 10 a.m., the bear ran west through six lanes of traffic on the interstate, Vogrin said. The officers were able to tree the bear to tranquilize and capture it.
The two cubs — underweight at 20 and 25 pounds — are rehabilitating at the Wet Mountain Wildlife Rehabilitation Center in Wetmore.
“These bears should [weigh] about 65 pounds at this point in the year,” Vogrin said.
Police officers were also called to reports of bear sightings in Acacia Park about 8:30 p.m. Sunday and saw what they believed to be a female bear and a cub in a tree, police said. Wildlife officials responded, but did not take action because the bears were too high to safely reach. The bears eventually came down from the tree, police said.
Vogrin said officials do not know if the bear cubs are related.
Bears’ presence in the city is very common, said Vogrin. During this time of year, they are entering a stage of increased appetite known as hyperphagia — eating 24/7 to prepare for hibernation.
The agency received 530 calls about bears throughout this year averaging four calls a week, most calls are to report bear sightings, which help track bears movement, Vogrin said.
(Christian Murdock, The Gazette)
A mother bear and her two cubs take shelter in a tree Thursday morning, Aug. 27, 2020, near downtown Colorado Springs. Neighbors said the bears had been in the tree since Wednesday morning. (The Gazette, Christian Murdock)
A bear cub climbs a tree to be with its mother and sibling Thursday morning, Aug. 27, 2020, near downtown Colorado Springs. The cub climbed down the tree to drink from a neighbor’s pond. (The Gazette, Christian Murdock)