Bear Sighting On Chestnut Lane

By Dan Brosgol

Ask your average Bedford resident about the wild animals they bump into around town, and you’ll probably get two top answers- deer and turkeys. There was even that coyote that a lot of us saw on the corner of Hartwell Avenue and Bedford Street, although that was about a quarter-mile into Lexington so it doesn’t really count.

One answer you probably won’t hear about is black bears.

Until now.

The other night, Chestnut Lane resident Ben Brosgol witnessed the following scene:

At around 1:30 this morning I heard a commotion on the front lawn. I switched on the porch light, expecting perhaps to find a raccoon. But instead I saw that a black bear, maybe 3 feet long and around 2 feet high, was on all fours and in the process of taking down a suet cage that was hanging on our ornamental crab apple tree. The bear succeeded, and casually carried it off in his/her snout while moseying towards the island. I had a good look at it (my neighbor’s garage light was on, so the animal was fully illuminated), and it was most definitely a bear.

The sighting was reported to the town, and the official response indicated that bear sightings have happened in Bedford before, commonly around bird feeders and suet hangers.

Make no mistake: the bear population in Massachusetts is on the rise and is estimated to be more than 4,000. This spring saw a rash of sightings across the Nashoba River valley and in Groton in particular, and June saw a spike in the number of sightings out in Hampden Country in Western Massachusetts. Now it seems like we have a new furry friend in little old Bedford.

If you do happen do see a bear in your yard or your travels around town, make sure to notify the town manager or the police department..

Should you run into a bear, here is a link to some good safety tips.

Editor’s Note: Here’s a link to the Bedford Police Department’s post about the bear