Black Bears have been cited in NE Ohio and becoming more common. Local Ashtabula resident, Pat Coffman was surprised to have a black bear staring at her. She grabbed her cell phone and snapped a picture. She said the bear seemed gentle and left once a crowd of cars surrounded him.
Apparently there were 129 bear sightings in Ohio last year with 50-75 confirmed. Wow! Most bear sightings were in Southern Ohio and Eastern Ohio. Area newspapers have reported bear sightings in Ashtabula, Ravenna, Youngstown, and Akron too.
Earlier this summer, we learned that there are Alligators in Akron, Ohio lakes. I’ve heard many rumors of mountain lion sightings locally too. Yikes! Too many wild animals in Ohio!
My family and I love to hike the woods and be outside. Now that we live in the woods, I will be extra cautious with my kiddos and my dog. Black Bears are generally known to be non-aggressive but I know I’d be scared to death if I came close to one or if one was close to my kids!
I’m glad everyone is OK. That must have been scary!