wildlife

Be on the lookout for bears in Le Roy!

According to its police department, there have been some bears sightings in the area around Hartwood Park.

And today, a resident in a housing tract known as Presidential Acres called police saying his bird feeders were destroyed and the animal tracks in the wet grass went into a wooded area behind his house. Presidential Acres runs between Summit Street Road and Robbins Road, west of the Hartwood Park area.

The state Department of Environmental Conservation was contacted and their advice to the homeowner is something the police department would like readers to know:

• Ensure that all garbage outside is either secured or brought in.
• Bird feeders, while they can be out during the day, need to be brought in at night, every night.
• Know that bears are intelligent animals and once they determine the location of an easy meal, they will come back continually.
• It should be emphasized that bears are wild animals and should be left alone.
• If the animal appears injured, or there is some incident causing danger, call police or the DEC to address the problem. Do not approach the animal.

To contact the Le Roy Police Department call 768-2527, ext. 2225, and leave a voicemail for Sgt. Timothy R. Hayes or call the Dispatch Center at 345-6350.

To contact the DEC office for Genesee County (Region 8) in regard to wildlife issues, call the Avon office at (585) 226-5380.

Local professional photographer Jay Terkel sent in this picture taken in his backyard in Corfu of a Cooper's hawk making a meal of a starling.

A bear was spotted in the area of Ham and Knowlesville roads, Alabama, this afternoon.

The reader who saw it didn't have a camera at the moment, but is keeping an eye out in case a photo opportunity presents itself.

We haven't been able to confirm it, but a reader reports that bears may have been spotted in the area of Platt Road and Kelsey Road in the Town of Batavia.

Mike Wasilco, regional wildlife manager for the Department of Environmental Control, said if there are bears in the area, nobody has called the DEC.

"I wouldn't be surprised," Wasilco said. "Bears have been seen recently in Wyoming County, which isn't that far away. What happens is young male bears strike out looking to find their own territory. This time of year you see bears in areas where you haven't seen them before."

His advice: Don't leave out food, no bird feeders, garbage, BBQ grills or pet food.

"Bears will behave themselves until they figure out that people are a nice and easy source of food," he said.

Meanwhile, while speaking with Wasilco, I asked him about the beavers building a dam near Creek Road in Bethany, which we covered Monday.  He said the local property owners can apply for a permit to relocate the beavers, which they can then either do themselves or higher a specialist.  Of course, one problem: The property owners with the problem don't own the land where the beavers are building, and that property owner is happy with the dam.